The Destroyer
by XtremeAuthor
Summary: Another prophecy, more dangers, war, new weapons, new enemies, new allies, new love, friends, and new powers. Super!Harry and friends as well as enemies. Can Harry and his friends find it in them to stop the darkness? FULL PLOT WITHIN. HHr fic. On Hiatus
1. It Begins

**PLOT: (VERY AU) **Harry Potter is in his final year at Hogwarts and its even more dangerous and action-packed than ever before. Voldemort is searching for an ancient tome, within which is hidden a ritual that would bring to him the powers of the Destroyer. Powers long ago locked away and banished from the Earth by the warriors of light at the time. But once he sets on this quest, things are put into motion to try to prevent it, and Harry Potter is suddenly swept along. Another prophecy, more dangers, war, new weapons, new enemies, new allies, love, friends, and new powers. Super!Harry (but a lot of the main characters are modified to make it so that he's not destroyeverythingintheway!Harry) Can they find the Guardian in time before Voldemort unlocks something that he doesn't fully understand?

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own HP nor do I want to, really. Though I do wish to make my own books someday... Anyway, the plot, made-up characters, spells, and so forth are made by me. I do not own any of the original characters, spells, histories and whatnot. Well, what are you reading this for? Start reading the chapter! Hehe.

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_It Begins_

* * *

_Somewhere in Europe..._

It was a cold night. The sky was clear and the stars shone and twinled brightly. The cloud-like Milky Way trailed throughout the night sky.

A lone figure walked through the woods, its steps light and silent, yet purposeful. Its cloak billowed behind it in silence as it headed for some unknown destination. Every few hundred feet it would stop and gaze around it, as if looking for something, before moving on.

Minutes later, the figure stopped. He stood at the edge of a small cliff, beneath which, deliberately hidden from view, stood a small wooden house. The light from the crescent moon caught the smoke coming from the chimney as the wind carried it off elsewhere.

It was surrounded by dense foliage and very old trees that stood tall and firm. A small beaten path led off to somewhere, the only signs of life other than the smoke from the chimney.

The figure scanned the area and made slight motions with its hand as something was grasped between its long fingers. It glowed briefly before the stick, for that was what it looked like, disappeared as quickly as it had come. It nodded, as if satisfied, before jumping into the air.

One would expect the figure to fall to the ground quickly, possibly breaking some bones, but it did not. Its robe caught the air and trailed behind it while it glided through the air, softly and slowly. With a slight rustle, it landed in front of the house. Standing, the figure turned and observed the house a little closer.

Vines and weeds covered much of the house, which in itself was tilted slightly to the right. The wood looked old, so old in fact it looked petrified. Runes were inscribed on it, partially visible beneath the weeds and vines that covered the house. All the windows were intact, albeit very dusty, and the door looked strong and new.

The figure, after a brief moment of waving the stick again, swiftly moved towards the door and with the stick in hand, made some motion at the door. With a loud bang it blew backwards, into the house, making the house shudder and groan and the ground shake. The leaves on the trees rustled and some animals could be heard scurrying away.

A few bright flashes of light later, the figure stood towering over someone. It was an ancient-looking man whose wrinkles seemed chisled into his skin, which was pale as the moon. He had very thin white hair and one of his eyes was completely white. He cowered before the dark cloaked figure, who seemed to enjoy what it was doing.

"W-W-What d-do you w-w-want?" asked the old man fearfully.

The figure hissed at him and bright red eyes shone from beneath its upraised hood. "You know what I seek. Do not attempt to hide it from me, for I shall find it! Now tell me what I need to know!" replied the figure, its eyes glowing red.

The old man shook his head, unable to form words.

With a flick of its stick, the figure made the old man rise up in the air. It stepped closer to the old man and looked directly into his eyes. "Before the sun rises, old man, you will have told me everything..." it said icily.

The figure's laugh was drowned out by the inhuman yell of the old man.

* * *

A short while later, the figure dropped the old man to the ground and smiled. Its long pale fingers took the hood over its head down and showed someone who didn't seem human. It was a man, so pale as if he had never seen the sun. He had slit nostrils and his pupils were like those of a snake while the red glow slowly began to dissapate.

He flicked his stick at the wall, where a secret compartment opened up. An old piece of parchment floated out of it and into his outstretched hand. Inspecting it, he opened the folded up piece of parchment and found himself looking at a map. He quickly folded it up again and tucked it safely into his pocket.

He turned and without a second glance walked out of the small house. He stopped at the edge of the small clearing and turned around, taking one last look at the old house, before he made some abrupt motions with his wand.

In an instant, the house was set ablaze. What had stood there for centuries began to burn away. The wood, the runes, the weeds, the vines, and the old man, whose lifeless eyes stared up as the ceiling collapsed onto him.

The figure's mouth twitched into a slight smile. He had been successful tonight, and by the end of it all he would achieve what he had always dreamed of.

The one thing that he, Lord Voldemort, wanted more than anything else lay at the end of this trail. At the end of this little journey that he had undertaken.

For once it was all finished, he would be the first and last.

He was going to be immortal.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **You like? Submit a review if you do, if you don't, submit one anyway telling me why you don't like my story. 


	2. Summer Begins

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own HP!

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_Summer Begins_

* * *

_No.4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey..._

Harry woke with a start. He was drenched in sweat, which made his skin sticky and moist. He was breathing hard and his heart was racing, as if he had run a hundred miles. He couldn't remember what he had been dreaming about, but he knew it had to do something with Voldemort.

Then some pieces came back to him. A small wooden house in the midst of a great forest... an old man... a map... something that Voldemort always wanted...

Harry shook his head and cursed at himself. He had just gotten back a few days earlier and here he was again, sinking back into the hole he had dug for himself earlier in his life. He had to get rid of these dreams or else another person he cared about might die because of his foolishness.

Shaking his head, he quickly tried to clear his mind. He slowed his breathing and soon enough his heart returned to its normal pace. He thought of nothing, felt nothing, and yet sensed everything. It was a strange sensation and it left his mind tingling slightly. He could sense a slight creaking from one of the trees outside. The rustle of a small mouse in the brush. The snoring and movement of his sleeping relatives.

Satisified, he brought himself out of his meditation. He had been practicing for hours over the past few days and had finally got it. Now if only he could learn occlumency and legilimency on his own.

Sighing, he looked around at the small pitiful excuse for a room that he called his own. A small worthless bed in the corner that, thankfully enough, Lupin had enchanted to be very comfortable as opposed to the back-aching stone slab that it used to be. A small table that looked more like a stool stood next to the bed and on it lay his glasses and some candies. A small piece of folded parchment also lay on top of everything and on it was a list of things that he needed to do that summer.

He needed to visit Diagon Alley and purchase a few things. At the top of the list were books. He wondered what Hermione would think about that and smiled. Next were a few other items, such as possibly battle robes and maybe a wand holster as well as a few other things that he might be interested in.

In less than a month he would come of age and his magic would fully mature. He would also be free of the underage magic restriction law and would be a legal adult in the magical world. That would mean he could make his own decisions and do what he wanted. He smiled at that.

Freedom.

It was something he was always close to and yet could not grasp. He was always hidden away by the Order or Dumbledore, always being told to do this or do that. Always kept in the dark and left to wait. Well, that would end soon enough. But first, he would need some sleep.

Rolling over, he closed his eyes and moments later sleep fell gently on him.

* * *

He was up by the time the sun poked its head over the horizon, greeting everyone on that side of the world. Its gentle and warm rays gave light and life to the world. Grunting, Harry finished a few sets of push-ups, sit-ups, and other exercises he had learned from a muggle exercise book that he had stolen from Dudley. His aunt had given it to her son in the hopes that he would lose weight, but he had thrown it aside as quickly as it had been given. 

Luckily, Harry was there to scoop it up and was now benifiting from the routine. Though it left him tired and in some form of pain, it trained his muscles and his mind and that was what mattered. He could feel his arms getting stronger and he could do more reps every day. After about an hour of working out, he heard his uncle Vernon say goodbye to his wife and close the front door.

Moments later, the car started and then sped away. He quickly opened the door and snuck downstairs, not that it would have made any difference since Dudley slept like a rock. He looked into the kitchen and saw his aunt, who from the time he had gotten back had become nicer to him for some reason.

"Well, uh... boy. You off for your run?" she asked in a strained manner, though she was obviously trying to reach out somehow.

Harry nodded. "Um, yeah."

"Well, breakfast will be here when you get back... so, you know how to, well, heat it up. I'll leave some juice out too."

"Thanks," was all Harry could say as his mind began to get confused. Why was she acting nicer to him all of a sudden??

With that his aunt nodded and, seemingly satisfied with herself, began to clean up after herself and her husband. She was still cleaning off the dishes when Harry left the house on his daily run.

He scanned the area outside the house and spotted some slight movement in the brush in front of No. 7. Smiling at the place he shook his head and proceeded to jog at a moderate pace.

He ran around five to six miles every day, which took him a little less than an hour to do. He was improving on his time every day and getting more in shape too.

Once he got back to the house he quickly stretched his muscles and then heated up his breakfast and got some juice out of the fridge. His aunt was watching the news in the living room and now and then he could hear snippets of what was going on in the muggle world.

Going into his tranquil mode, he reached out with his magic and sensed that Dudley was still asleep and that his aunt felt worried about something... He could also sense that the Order member right outside was Tonks.

Smiling at what he had gleaned from that, he wondered how long it would take before that became second-nature to him so that he could turn it off and on at will. Possibly even leave it on passively so that he could sense things easier and maybe even give him an edge in certain situations. He would have to look into that soon.

After wolfing down his breakfast and chugging the juice, he then went upstairs and took a nice, hot shower. Immediately after that he went back downstairs, got a snack out of the fridge and some water, and then went back upstairs.

Carefully locking the flimsy door, he opened his trunk, took out some of his school stuff, and began to do his homework. This time he thought of what Ron would say and do once he found out about what Harry was doing and he laughed yet again. Shaking his head, he concentrated on his schoolwork. The sooner he had that done, the more free time he could have and the less stress too.

Besides, he reasoned with himself, it would help him out in the long run.

* * *

A few hours later, Harry was shaken out of his Transfigurations homework by a persistent tapping at the window. His wand was out and he pointed it at the window, where a large, dark brown owl was trying to get in.

He tucked his wand back in his robes before opening the door manually. The owl flew in, dropped the letter, and then perched itself on the stand that normally Hedwig would stay on. However, she was out at the moment to hunt and so would not be back until night.

"What's this?" Harry asked no one in particular as he grabbed the letter.

It was blank, but upon lookin again he saw words start to form on the face of the envelope.

**_To: Mr. Harry James Potter  
Resident of No. 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey  
Gringotts Diagon Alley Region_**

His interest picqued, he quickly tore open the envelope and slipped the letter out of it. He unfolded the parchment and began to read:

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_It has been made aware to us that your 17th birthday is drawing closer. As it is the time when you will be considered a full wizard and mature enough to govern yourself, you will be given more freedoms and powers. As such, it is our duty here at Gringotts to inform you of your current account statements as well as any other business that concerns you._

_You are hereby requested to attend a meeting on July 20th to discuss your current account statements as well as take care of any unfinished business. We assure you that what is said there will remain between you and Gringotts unless, of course, the dark side is involved. Your appointment is at 9:00 am, please be on time. Merely come to the Gringotts branch in Diagon Alley, state your name and business, and you will be escorted to the room of your appointment._

_Respectfully,  
Harkray  
Head of Gringotts Client Affairs_

Wondering what he meant by finishing unfinished business and account statements, Harry put the parchment away. However, another folded up piece of parchment fell onto the floor. He scooped it up and opened it.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_It appears that there are some discrepancies with your accounting. We have also received no replies from you for our previous letters. We assumed that this was intentional and perhaps you did not wish to reply, but we have investigated and come to the conclusion that someone is intercepting your mail. This owl is enchanted with the strongest goblin magic to pass through any interception charms and spells that may be in your area. It also makes the owl invisible to any but the sender and receiver of messages._

_We would like for you to come at the appointed time, however if you do have problems getting to us then tell us by this owl. It will wait until you can give it an answer. It would be kind of you to feed it, but you may also allow it to hunt on its own. We cannot say much else until we meet face-to-face Mr. Potter, which is hopefully soon. Your family and yourself are very important and respected in the eyes of the goblin nation and so we will do our best to help._

_A reply as soon as possible would be best. We have much to talk about and very little time._

_Respectfully,  
Karvawl  
Head of Gringotts Diagon Division_

Harry's mind was a swirl. A whirlwind of emotions hit him and it made him drop the letter and sit down on his bed. Anger, frustration, curiosity, nervousness... it all came to him and washed over him.

He could feel his magic building up inside him, something that he never felt before. This new sensation of power was frightening and yet intoxicating. He could feel it, as if he was getting more and more powerful by the day. Perhaps it had something to do with his body getting in better shape, but he would have to research that later.

In a moment, he had cleared his mind again so that he could think better. He would have to ask someone he could trust to bring him there. After all, he wouldn't be a full wizard with all the freedoms and rights attached to it until his birthday and he was sure Dumbledore would want him to stay in the vicinity of the house for as long as possible so that the blood wards or whatever they were would keep protecting him until his birthday.

He tightened his hand into a fist as he thought of Dumbledore. The old wizard had controlled and manipulated his life for far too long. He wasn't even sure what to believe from that old headmaster anymore. Sure, he was fighting for the light, but his methods and practices were questionable as well as his decisions.

His emerald eyes glowed briefly, though he did not notice it. He also did not notice the owl widen its eyes at him, either out of fear or awe.

He calmed himself again though and smiled, in a few weeks he would be free of that man's machinations. He would be a free wizard, so to speak. He would choose where he went and what he did, no longer to be told what to do by some plotting old headmaster who may not truly see if what he is doing is for the better.

He picked up the letter on the ground and put it on the small table next to his bed. He then cleared his mind again before resuming his homework, not noticing that the owl watched him intently and curiously.

* * *

_Somewhere in Europe..._

"You will not succeed!" cried another old man. He had thick gray hair and looked a little younger than the previous man. He too lived in a secluded wooden house with strange runes engraved all over it.

The dark figure before him laughed maniacally. "I will succeed, old man. You cannot hide this from me for long! I will tear you and your silly covenant in half if need be," he said coolly and the old man believed him.

"Perhaps you can help me though... perhaps you can tell me where it is now? You can save me the trouble of rooting all of you out and destroying your covenant."

The old man hesitated, but then shook his head. "I cannot help you... I-I do not k-k-know where it i-is exactly. I merely k-know w-what you need n-next.." he said in defeat.

Voldemort grinned, "And that is?"

Without warning, the old man's hands shot out and wands materialized out of nowhere. Dark orange spells flew out of both tips, heading for Voldemort, but he was no longer there.

The spells splashed onto the wall and melted the wood clean through.

"Tsk, tsk... I thought you would make it easy for me. I thought wrong," Voldemort said from behind the old man, startling him.

However, the old man sprung into the air, twisted, and aiming both wands at Voldemort again began to attack him with all manner of spells and curses.

Voldemort hissed and conjured a shield, blocking most of them before flicking the others away.

"This is your last warning, old man. Tell me now, or will I have to torture it out of _you_?" Voldemort yelled at the last word as he flung a few spells back at the old man.

He hastily conjured a shield before jumping off to the side, just as the shield broke and the spells hit the wall, leaving large burn marks and holes.

The old man quickly brought the furniture to life and transfigured them into human-shaped forms. He then ordered them to attack Voldemort, who cried out in surprise but quickly fought back.

His wand was lightning fast as he slashed through the furniture, made them fly back, blew them up, broke them apart, burned them, or banished them. One of the chairs managed to clip him in the side and he hissed, his eyes glowing red, and in a flurry of robes the chair-man suddenly turned into a large wooden snake as Voldemort disappeared.

The old man looked around, wands gripped tightly in his hands. The wooden snake fell to the floor and then hissed at him. He fired off curses at it, but it avoided some of them while others just left burn marks on the wood.

It approached him swiftly and he stumbled over backwards. Mustering what strength he could, he tried to get up but then a foot came crashing down on his chest. He brought his arms up but the wands were no longer there.

"Missing something?" sneered Voldemort as the wooden snake suddenly grew larger.

It then wrapped itself around the old man, completely covered him and leaving only his head out in the open. The wooden snake's head was right in front of his own, staring at him.

Voldemort hissed at it and it hissed back before slowly constricting. The old man started to sob as the pain slowly grew. The snake was slowly crushing his body. He heard his bones crack, felt mind-numbing pain, and then he let out a scream of anguish.

With a smile, Voldemort gripped his head and looked him directly in the eyes before ripping through the old man's mind.

* * *

_Somewhere in Germany..._

The navy blue robed man appeared out of nowhere. A quick scan of the area showed no one there and he turned and began to run at a fast pace.

Minutes later, he reached a small hill, on one side of which was a very well hidden stone door. Upon the door were carved ancient runes and it was this that he was looking for. He quickly muttered something and raised his right hand, which was in a glove. He took off the glove for a brief moment as something on his skin glowed, before he put the glove back on.

The stone doorway trembled and then the stone door itself began to move. The runes on the door glowed and then died out as the stone door opened fully, showing a dark passage behind it.

Without hesitation the man stepped through the entry and instantly torches lit up the long hallway, at the end of which stood a lone gold door. Flanking the door were two heavily armored figures who carried steel staves. They looked very intimidating and almost seemed like statues, but he knew that they were not.

He ran down the hallway as fast as he could. Nodding to one of the armored figures, he stopped before the golden door and then knocked.

"Enter," said a voice that echoed through the hallway.

He pushed open the golden door and stepped through as the door closed behind him. He was in a small circular room, this time with four armored figures with staves. A woman sat behind a table in the middle of the room and without looking up said, "He is expecting you."

Nodding, the man in the navy blue robes went around her and to the door right behind her. This was another stone door with runes on it, but he did not need to recite any incantations for this door. He paused a moment before pushing the door open. It ground against the stone floor, which made a rather loud noise that echoed, but he did not pay it any attention nor did anyone mind.

The door closed of its own accord once more after he stepped through. The navy blue robed man was in another hallway, but this time there were multiple doors on either side and with even more armored figures. They did not move, but he knew they were eyeing him and watching his every move.

He walked all the way towards the end of the hallway, where yet another set of doors stood. He knocked on these and waited.

A moment of silence followed before a strong and deep voice came from behind the doors, "Come in."

He nodded to the two flanking figures before opening the doors, which again closed behind him automatically. He kept his eyes low, not looking up as he approached the throne in the middle of the circular room.

"At ease, my friend," said the voice in a calming manner and yet it was still strong and commanding.

He finally looked up then at a man who looked to be a mere hundred years old and yet was far older than that. So much older. He had slight wrinkles and long dark gray hair. He also had a long gray beard and twinkling steel eyes that pierced you, as if he could see into your very soul. He sat upon a stone throne

"Why have you come?" asked the man on the throne.

"We've lost contact with some of the guardians..." he said, but was cut off by the man on the throne.

"How many? Who? When?"

"Three so far, sir. Haydenreich, Layfeius, and Sallena. Over the past week," he replied.

The man on the throne brought his hands to his face and rubbed his temples. His fingers had rings on them, some of gold, some of silver, and some of steel. All warrior rings and battle rings. His robes were jet black with some dark gray and some armor here and there. Veins crawled up and down his hands and fingers, showing some of his age. He sighed.

"How long?" he asked.

The man in the navy blue robes paused for a moment. "Perhaps five months, maybe less. It is too late to save the others. He already has more than half the needed information to find it. It will take him less than a week to find the others and then it will take him more than a month to find it and perhaps use it," he said.

The man on the throne nodded, rubbing his eyes and sighing yet again.

"Who is it that seeks the Destroyer?" he asked.

The navy blue man hesitated again, before replying with one word. "Voldemort."

"Then you know who must awaken the Protector," said the man on the throne.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Submit a review if you like it. If you don't, submit one anyway telling me why you don't like my story.


	3. Fudge

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own HP etc... etc...

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_Fudge_

* * *

_The Burrow, somewhere outside Ottery St. Catchpole_

Ronald Bilius Weasley wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his hand as he smiled triumphantly at the recently de-gnomed garden. He had de-gnomed the garden so much that he could do it without really concentrating on it, leaving his mind to think of something else. Yes, he did think.

Sure, he could be slow at times, but the only real reason he didn't do well at school was because he was lazy. He actually also observed a lot of things that most people would not see. Like, for instance, how he could sense something there between Hermione and his best mate, Harry. He also knew that his previous liking of his other best mate Hermione had already passed.

He chuckled to himself and wondered how he ever even thought of liking his best friend like that. Shaking his head, he ran a hand through his red hair and wondered what to do about the upcoming war. He was getting more and more involved with it and from what the twins have been saying coupled with what he overhears from his parents, the war was getting worse.

He had to be ready, not only to help protect his family but to be there for his best friend. Harry had told him about the prophecy, and if... no, when it happens he wanted to be there to help his friend. He didn't want Hermione to be the only one helping him again.

He had thought long and hard about everything that had happened over the past few years and finally saw the foolishness and stupidity that he had displayed. Hermione had been more of a best friend to Harry than he had and he vowed to change that. He would help out more, do more, and hopefully fit in more. He was always looked on as the one who didn't really do much, the friend who was there but also not.

That's all changed now.

They'll be stunned when they see the new Ronald Weasley. He smiled as he walked back inside the house and picked up the book he was reading on defensive spells.

* * *

_No. 4 Privet Drive, two days later..._

Harry opened his eyes, releasing himself from his meditation.

The dark owl was still there, watching his every move, and he nodded at it. It hooted back at him and then looked at Hedwig, who seemed to be looking at the dark owl with a littel jealousy and disdain.

She hooted at him and flew over to his shoulder before rubbing her head against his.

"There, there girl. You know I want only one owl and that it's you," he whispered to Hedwig.

She hooted and then flew back to the perch, keeping as much distance between her and the dark brown owl.

Chuckling at her actions, Harry threw on some of Dudley's hand-me-downs and quickly went downstairs, careful to avoid the creaking step. The Dursleys were watching a movie on their new flatscreen television and so the sound of the door opening would be masked, for the most part. He carefully unlocked the front door, opened it, and then closed it again.

He nodded to where he sensed there was someone and walked over to Mrs. Figgs house. He knocked on the door and waited a short while before the locks were pulled and it opened.

"Mr. Potter! What a pleasant surprise this is," she greeted him, "Would you like anything? Water? Tea? Coffee? Juice, perhaps?"

"No thank you, Mrs. Figg. I'm here to ask Dumbledore if I could go to Diagon Alley sometime," he told her, straight to the point.

Nodding, she beckoned for him to follow her, "Very well then, very well... Come here, Mr. Potter. Yes, that's it," she said.

She took some powder from a pot that hung from the wall and threw it into the fire. It turned bright green just as she said "Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts!" She then knelt down and stuck her head into the fire. It took a minute or so before she finally retreived her head and smiled at Harry before walking off.

"Ah, what can I do for you my boy?" asked the fiery green face of Albus Dumbledore.

Harry nodded at the headmaster before telling him of his request.

"Hmmm... and why is it that you wish to go to Diagon Alley?" he asked.

Harry was about to say "None of your business old man" but decided against it. He, instead, said that he wanted to buy his school supplies and possibly a few books and such.

"Now, now, Harry. We both know your school supplies list hasn't been sent yet. I cannot let you go just for books, Harry. You must understand that leaving the protection of Privet Drive makes you very vulnerable to attack. We cannot lose you, Harry, and it is of the utmost importance that you stay there until the enchantments wear off. By which time you will be moved to Grimmauld Place," said the old headmaster.

Harry kept his anger in check and bit back a retort, producing a fake smile.

"I understand, Headmaster. Can we have an arrangement, maybe? Can I just give someone a list of books that I would like to purchase and then can they be delivered over to me?" he asked.

Dumbledore shook his head and frowned, "Forgive me, Harry, but we are short-handed right now. I don't believe we have time for little shopping trips for you. Perhaps when you are able to apparate safely you can, but as of now I cannot help you. Now, if that is all...?"

Harry nodded, "Thank you Professor." Yes. Thanks for nothing.

The green fire died and the face of Dumbledore disappeared.

"Well, that answers that question. Good for nothing old meddling geezer..." he whispered to no one in particular, though in his head he continued his string of insults at the headmaster of Hogwarts.

He stood and walked towards the front door, only to be stopped by Mrs. Figg. She smiled at him and asked if everything was alright.

"Fine. Everything is fine," Harry replied, smiling.

* * *

_Somewhere in Sweden_

Voldemort hissed. The last guardian was somewhere in the mountainous northern part of Sweden, but he could not locate it. He could feel it there, he knew it was there, and yet he could not see it. He knew the old man must have somehow found out that he was trying to find them.

He flew up into the air to begin another search pattern over the area he knew the house was. He began muttering under his breath, waving his wand about, hoping that somehow he could find it.

He did not have much time.

* * *

_Ministry of Magic_

Cornelius Fudge sat silently before the Wizengamot, all of whom were talking in low voices amongst themselves. Here he was, the Minister of Magic, sitting in the seat where criminals that passed through this court had sat. For he was considered to be a criminal now too.

Silence suddenly engulfed the main chamber as Albus Dumbledore, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, strode purposefully towards the central podium. His blue eyes were twinkling, though none knew if it was from delight or if it was just normal. He wore a long brown robe with gold lace that flowed behind him. His long, crooked nose held aloft his half-moon spectacles, which he moved up his nose with a finger.

He stood and fixed some papers that were on the podium, before his gaze sweeped along the gathered Wizengamot. Everyone who had a seat attended, showing the interest of the ruling party of the wizarding world in the matter. Every vote that could be cast would be cast today.

Satisfied that they were ready, he called the session to order.

"Today, we are gathered here for the trial and removal of Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge. The first matter we must deal with is his removal from his office, for he is still currently the Minister of Magic. If the person who called the no-confidence voting could please rise to be recognized by the body," Dumbledore spoke, his gaze looking around.

An old witch stood, nodding to those she knew, and then looked to Albus.

"Please identify yourself and then list the reason or reasons as to why you have called this vote upon the Minister," Dumbledore instructed her.

She identified herself as the Senior Undersecretary for Internal Affairs, an obscure post that few knew of. It handled observing the Ministry itself and rooting out any undesirables or anyone who may be doing wrong and such. Once she was finished, Dumbledore nodded to her, indicating that she may be seated.

Fudge deflated every moment the woman was talking as she told the Wizengamot the reasons as to why she was calling a vote of no-confidence in him, essentially stripping him of his title as Minister.

"All in favor of the no-confidence vote?" Dumbledore's voice boomed, interrupting the slight talking of the body.

Hands rose at once and it was evident that more than half of the body wanted him out. However, they had to wait for the official count for the records.

"It is done then. With a vote count of sixty-two to eleven, Cornelius Fudge is no longer the Minister of Magic. We may deal with the election of a new Minister after this trial is over," he added quickly, noticing a few murmurs start. He knew that they were debating on who to vote for now and more importantly who would run for the position.

Clearing his throat, Dumbledore looked down at the parchment before him and read very loudly and clearly, "Cornelius Fudge, you are hereby brought before this legal body to try you for the crimes you have committed. Said crimes being: extortion, bribery, acceptance of bribery, blackmail, treason, aiding Death Eaters and possibly Voldemort himself, breaking multiple Ministry rules, endangering the Wizarding community, and also blatant abuse of your power when you were Minister."

The chamber was silent, not a soul stirred, not even Fudge. Dumbledore looked up briefly and then looked back down at the parchment before him.

"Mr. Fudge, you have the right to be represented by someone else to this legal body. Who do you call upon for such a task?" he continued.

Fudge looked up then, defeat shining fully in his eyes. He shook his head, tears forming in his eyes. Everything he had worked so hard to achieve... ruined, broken, destroyed... he had nothing left... but perhaps...

"I plead guilty to said charges, however, I would like to exchange information for lesser punishment," Fudge proposed, blinking so that his eyes would clear slightly. The tears rolled down his cheeks and he felt humiliated, but he could not wipe them away for the chains of the chair bound him tightly.

Dumbledore looked pensieve as the members of the Wizengamot began to murmur amongst themselves.

"Attention!" cried Dumbledore, silencing them, "All in favor of this proposal?"

Almost all hands raised at this again. Dumbledore nodded, he could not vote on this, but his supporters and friends knew where he stood on the matter. "Very well then, Mr. Fudge if you would please begin. Speak slowly so that the records may be written and checked. If your information proves irrelevant, not useful, or even very incorrect, the punishment will be very severe," he warned.

Fudge almost smiled at that. His punishment for the aforesaid crimes were already severe enough to land him a lifetime in Azkaban or any of the other wizarding prisons. Perhaps even death would come to him if they so chose, but he knew the chances of that were slim.

Jogging his memory, he began to give them what information on Death Eaters and the like he knew about.

After a few minutes, he paused and at this Dumbledore looked up at him, "Is that all?" he asked flatly.

Fudge blinked and wondered if he had anything else, before spotting the man who had started it all. The man who had whispered into his ear and who he had followed like a blind mouse.

"Lucius Malfoy," as he said this the elder Malfoy squinted his eyes and rose in defiance, "I name him a Death Eater and close supporter of Voldemort! It was him who influenced me! He told me the information I know!" he yelled then.

"FOOL!" cried the aristocrat, suddenly disappearing in a cloud of smoke as spells tried to trap him.

Dumbledore sighed, he had hoped to catch the elder Malfoy, but alas Fudge was too slow to tell them. He could have bound him earlier, but then that would imply that he already knew the information and had not acted on it earlier. He rubbed his forehead, wondering what to do.

"Oh my! He's dead!!" cried someone off to his right.

Dumbledore went stiff and then looked around as the others began to talk loudly. Then he saw who they were pointing at. Cornelius Fudge was staring blankly up at Dumbledore, his mouth agape. True enough, Dumbledore sensed traces of the killing curse and cursed at himself inwardly for letting that happen. Under his bloody nose! The papers will be all over that.

"Aurors! Please return the body to his family. This trial is now ended and I call the Wizengamot to a break session until midafternoon, when we shall resume..."

* * *

_Granger Residence..._

Hermione thanked the owl as it dropped her today's edition of the Prophet. Splattered across the front page was written **FUDGE DIES DURING TRIAL**. The article went on to describe the charges brought against Fudge, his removal from office, his giving of information, and the escape of Lucius Malfoy, who was credited for the death of Fudge a moment later.

_An interview with the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, Albus Dumbledore (See page 2A for further details on history with Wizengamot), was turned down and the old headmaster was seen exiting the scene shortly after the death of Fudge. He was killed right under the supposedly most powerful wizard of the light and this is a mighty blow to his persona._

_This reporter has uncovered a rumor that Dumbledore already had firsthand knowledge that Lucius Malfoy was a Death Eater. The source who describes Dumbledore as having heard information and accounts of Malfoy Sr.'s dealings further says that Dumbledore ignored this information. What could this possibly mean? Why did the leader of the light not act? (see page 3C for further details)_

Shaking her head, she actually agreed with the reporter. Dumbledore had known all this time that Lucius was a Death Eater. Sure, he was a powerful and influential aristocrat, but Dumbledore was... well, Dumbledore! He could have had him arrested and his house searched. They would have probably found something to incriminate him.

She put it down to continue reading later and glanced over at one her last remaining homework assignments. It was one of a few a complex charms that they were supposed to learn and practice for the summer. They then had to write a a two foot-long essay on each of the charms describing what they did, what the spell looked like, and what it could be used for effectively.

She decided to read up on the charms again as well as continue reading some other books she had purchased before they had gone home. Hermione had a full schedule for next year, that was for sure. After all, she had passed all her OWL's and so could really take any classes she wanted.

Grabbing their 7th year Charms book, _Charms for Champions: Advanced Edition_. It was a rather thick book, though it thankfully was charmed to be lighter than it should have been. She bit her lip slightly before going into full concentration mode, her eyes scanning the pages fairly quickly while her mind comprehended, compiled, and filed away the knowledge.

After a moment, she began practicing some wand movements. An hour or so later, she took a break and put the book away. Putting her wand down, she massaged her wrist as she headed downstairs to get a snack. She was still, after all, human and thus needed food.

* * *

_No. 4 Privet Drive_

Harry had just finished his morning run and had already taken a nice hot shower. Just wearing a towel around his waist, he had begun to sort through his things again, hoping to find something to do to pass the time. He had already finished reading all of his old school books and any other books he possessed. It was then that Hedwig hooted, as if to tell him something, and after which there was a tapping at the window.

Quickly looking over, Harry smiled as he saw the familiar dark brown owl flapping its wings outside the window. Tied to its feet was a letter and a package.

Harry opened the window and the owl flew in, dropping the package onto his bed along with the letter. It then settled onto the owl perch, where it hooted at Hedwig, who merely huffed and turned away.

Smiling, he grabbed the letter and tore it open.

_Mr. Potter,_

_We were glad to hear from you and do express our greatest apologies for not finding out that your mail was intercepted sooner. We are deeply ashamed and would like to extend to you any assistance you may need._

_Your reply was satisfactory and expected, seeing as there are those who wish to exploit you Mr. Potter. Rest assured that the goblin nation stands by its allies, and there are very few of them. You will be pleased to know that you are among the few who hold that title. One hour before your appointment, a goblin will appear at your home._

_Do not be alarmed for he will appear right inside of your room. Be ready by 8:00 am sharp for timing is key. Once you are taken, the goblin shall return and set up a spell that will make it so that anyone who is scanning to make sure you are still there will know you are there. He will also mask your magical trace and later on we shall do other things to secure you and your freedom._

_We cannot discuss anything else, for now, and wait only for the appointed time._

_Respectfully,  
Harkray  
Head of Gringotts Client Affairs  
Diagon Alley Division_

Harry nodded, satisfied with the arrangement. Though he was not sure what else they would do to secure him and his freedom, he could trust them for now. They had shown no signs of betraying him and as far as he knew they were not for the dark side. He looked at the calendar and willed for July 20th to come sooner.

An idea suddenly came to him and he quickly grabbed a quill, some ink, and a piece of parchment. He hastily wrote a letter back and gave it to the dark brown owl, who accepted it with an outstretched leg. Hooting, it spread its wings and flew off once more.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Reviews are most welcome. Thanks for those who did. 


	4. Genkou

**DISCLAIMER:** I still do not own HP...

**NOTE: **I will be focusing more on Harry's POV for the most part. There will be snippets here and there of other places so you may understand some things, however this chapter will be almost all for Harry.

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_Genkou_

* * *

_No. 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey_

Harry was on near the end of his morning workout routine when he heard a knock on his door. At first he thought it would be an Order member, but if it had been they probably would not have knocked. After all, they had never knocked before.

So it was to his confusion that he thought that it must be his relatives. He had an inkling to who it was, but he wasn't entirely sure. He quickly wiped as much sweat off as he could and then put on a shirt.

Gripping his wand, which he kept on his person at all times now, he approached the door and opened it.

His aunt stood before him, shifting uneasily from foot to foot and nervously looking at the floor. She looked up and smiled slightly, which left Harry confused even more. She had never done this before, why was she nicer? He was still asking himself this question when she finally spoke.

"Boy, I... Well, what I mean to say is... we are going out for the month. You will be on your own in the house and I would... just like to ask you keep yourself safe and the house clean. Understand?" she said rather quickly.

Harry nodded, still confused, but he was happy on the inside that they were to leave this weekend. That would make things much easier.

"Here are the keys to the house. You will still be running, then?" she asked suddenly.

"Uh, yeah.."

"Well then, here you go," she said, handing him the keys to the front door, "Make sure to lock it before you go. There are rumors of thievery close by. I best be off then. Well... have fun boy," she said before walking away and descending the stairs.

Harry closed the door and wondered what that could mean. He decided to finish his workout first, take a shower to cool off, and then figure out what's going on.

He continued on, unaware of the pair of eyes that had been constantly watching him since a few days ago.

* * *

_The next day..._

His uncle hadn't said a word to him since he had gotten back. He had merely glared at Harry, but today he actually looked at him and nodded ever so slightly before leaving out the front door. Dudley, as usual, smirked at him for being 'left behind' to not go on their trip to the amusement park somewhere that Harry hadn't heard of.

Dudley had grown an inch, but he had gotten far wider than before and nearly didn't fit through the door frame. Aunt Petunia seemed to notice and frowned before covering it up as fast as it had appeared. She looked back at Harry and nodded at him, "You take care, boy," she said before closing the door, leaving Harry alone in the house.

He heard the car engine come to life, he heard the brake released, and then he heard the engine roar as the car sped away. Harry looked around at the relative peace and quiet that he now had. Smiling, he went into the living room and jumped on the soft, plush couch. The couch that he had never been allowed to go on. Of course, he had gone on it before but this felt better because he knew they were not coming back anytime soon.

Grinning, he flicked on the television and flipped through some of the channels. A few minutes later, he turned the t.v. off because there was nothing good on and left. It was then that he had a sudden idea, something so brilliant that he thanked whatever dieties were up there for their blessings on him. He quickly went to his uncle's office and his eyes immediately darted to the surface of the desk.

Standing on the desk was a computer, a laptop to be precise. He had seen his uncle bring it in after he had bought it and it was the object of much entertainment for Harry, who had snuck in multiple times and played around with it. He sat on the comfy swivel chair and then instantly went on the internet.

Instead of playing games though, he actually had a practical reason to use the internet. He wanted to research a few things and for the better part of the day he sat there, writing things down with a pen and paper. The thought actually crossed his mind as to why Wizards didn't just use pens and regular paper instead of quills and parchment. It baffled him, but that was a question he could ask someone who was more learned in the history and customs of the Wizarding world.

Satisfied with what he had found, he logged off the computer and put it back in hibernate mode. He then left the office with a handful of papers on which were written the things he had looked up on. The first thing on his list was to find and search for any useful martial arts or fighting styles. He had learned a lot about some of them, like Tae Kwon Do, Karate-do, Judo, Hapkido, Krav Maga, and the like.

He wanted to learn some of them and actually found some instructors and learning centers for these things nearby. Though he knew they were beyond the 'safety zone' of the wards that protected him. This posed a potential problem, but he could solve that later on.

Next on his list was to find a gym of some sorts or a recreational center. There was one at the very edge of the safe zone and he had already mapped a route there and back for his morning routine. Smiling at his succeess, he read on as he heated himself some food.

Another thing he had researched was the news. He had gone on every major news website, checking to see if there was anything mysterious or out of place so that he could glean some information from the media about what was happening in the world. He still had not received any mail or any news, but he had gotten used to it. He knew that any letters he would send would be intercepted as well so he didn't even bother.

He would have to talk to his friends later on when he saw them face to face. Sighing as he felt a terrible longing to be with his friends, he cleared that thought from his mind and began to eat.

* * *

_July 3rd_

The next day, he ran to the small gym that he had found online. There was a membership fee which Harry paid with the money that he had found around the house. He had a good two-hundred pounds sterling on him. Of course, most of them he had 'found' in Dudley's messy room. His parents gave him so much money that he had actually decided to bring some in his wallet and leave a bunch in his room.

Too bad for him he kept forgetting that he had some in his room and since he was extremely messy, they got scattered about his room. Eventually, Harry noticed this and decided it was a good idea to scrounge up some of the money for any muggle purchases he might need to do. He couldn't, after all, pay a muggle with wizard money.

The fee was fifteen pounds, which he paid over quickly. They gave him a security card and then told him how to use it. It was at that moment that he thought of Mr. Weasley and how ecstatic he would be if he were there. Grinning to himself, he waved the card in front of the sensor, which beeped and turned green. He heard the lock disengage and, still grinning, went into the gym for his workout.

An hour later, he had jogged back and was ready for his shower when he decided that maybe he could try and check up on the martial arts training center that he had found close by. It was outside the edge of his safety zone, but he thought that maybe since it was close enough it would be fine.

"Well, best way to find out is to try it," he told himself and so put on some new clothing and jogged over.

He sensed that he was near the edge of the wards and stopped for a moment. A little voice in the back of his head had started to speak, telling him not to go out and that if he did and was captured or killed, all would be lost.

Then the prophecy came back to him and he wondered about it for a moment. It had said that "_either must die at the hand of the other..._" meaning that Voldemort is the only one that can kill him and vice versa. This was both a good thing and a bad thing.

It was good in that perhaps, if the prophecy was really true, he would not die until Voldemort himself came to kill him. It was bad because that was just it. They could very well capture him, take him to Voldemort, who can then kill him with ease. But he sensed somewhere deep down that Voldemort was away and was not in England. In fact, he felt that he was far from it.

He would have tapped into the connection between them, but he knew not how and he didn't want to try because he knew nothing about Occlumency or Legilimency. The two things he would need for such a task.

Setting his mind straight, he finally decided to go on with it. He began to walk forward and he could feel the edge of the ward, but before he could step out of it, a hand grabbed him from behind and yanked him back.

Surprised, he fell to the ground but rolled around, grabbed his wand, and jumped back up onto his feet.

Standing in front of him was Remus Lupin. He was a known werewolf, Harry's old Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and he was also best friends with James Potter and Sirius Black. He was a Marauder, the last of them, and Harry considered him family. The only one he had left.

"Harry, what do you think you're doing?" he demanded, his face serious and his tone hard, "You can't leave the safety of the wards! You know this, Harry. What are you trying to do?"

Harry felt a little anger rise up in him, but he ignored it as he tried to explain to Remus why he needed to go out.

"Professor," but Remus interrupted him by telling him not to call him professor anymore.

"You can call me Remus, Harry. But enough of that, what were you planning on doing? You weren't trying to run away now were you? It was only because I argued with Dumbledore that he lets you run and do things outside, within the wards of course," Remus said, "Please don't give him a reason to keep you locked up in that house until you turn 17."

Harry's anger was rising, but he ignored it still. He did not want to get angry at someone he considered family.

"I was only trying to get to that martial arts center over there," he said, pointing down the street. Sure enough, a huge white sign with black lettering read **Whinging Martial Arts Center**.

Remus looked at it and looked thoughtful for a moment, "I... don't know, Harry. It's still far enough away from the wards that it may be too late to return if they ever find you and attack. It may look close, Harry, but think of this, every second you are out there you are vulnerable to attack or capture," he looked at Harry with concern and care in his eyes.

Harry nodded, "But I can go under my invisibilty cloak and maybe you can help me! Disillusion me or change my appearance somehow. It's worked before, why can't it work now?" he asked. No, he pleaded.

He made his eyes grow wider and began to pout.

"Oh... Oh no! I know that face! No! I won't! It's... damnit! Alright!" Remus said, unable to resist the puppy look.

"If anyone catches wind of this, Dumbledore will try to lock you up forever. For your own protection, he would say. Frankly, I don't agree with that and I also think that you should be training hard for this war. You've fought Death Eaters, Dementors, and even Voldemort himself and have survived to tell the tale. You have an important role in this war, I can feel it," Remus said, before waving his wand over Harry's head.

It felt like an egg was cracked open over his head and was pouring liquid all over him as the spell went through his body. Remus then transfigured some rocks into a mirror and let Harry see himself.

He looked a little older and his features were still mostly the same and yet different at the same time. His scar was barely noticable but if one looked closely enough one would see it. Grinning, he thanked Remus with a hug.

"Ow, getting a little stronger there I see. Once you're of age, I'll try to push for your training Harry. It's vital you are able to fight well."

"Thanks, Prof- Remus. I owe you one."

"No you don't, cub," he said, "I'll follow you and stand guard. Whenever it's my shift I'll be doing that, but if it's someone else, be sure to stay hidden at all times. Also, it wouldn't hurt to go either early in the day or at night because that's when the guard is least alert."

Harry thanked him once more before stepping through the wards. He felt a strange sensation as he did so, but then walked on.

It took less than a minute from the edge of the wards to get to the Martial Arts Center. There were a few cars in the parking lot and the door was unlocked so he assumed that it was already open. He pulled open the glass door and stepped inside.

The air inside was cooler than it was outside and he thanked whoever invented airconditioning for inventing it. The temperature outside was getting hotter already.

Harry was in a large reception room with a dark gray carpet and light gray walls with steel columns. It seemed like a very modern and high-tech place. Harry saw the front desk and made a beeline for it.

"Hello, sir. How may I help you?" asked the woman behind the desk. She looked to be in her mid-forties with shoulder-length black hair that was tied up into a bun behind her head. Chopsticks were stuck through it and Harry noticed that she was of Asian descent.

"I'd like to inquire about lessons, please."

"Very well then, sir. In what field of martial arts were you interested in?"

"Umm... I'm not sure, really. I would like something relatively easy to learn and yet also very useful if I ever need it," he replied. In truth he was a little bit more interested in Judo and Karate, but he also did like Tae Kwon Do with its high-flying kicks.

"That's understandable. Most people who come here are not sure of what martial arts to learn. May I suggest you take all of the martial arts we offer and see which you like the most? We have a special going on right now, actually," she asked him with a smile.

Harry nodded, "That would be great! Thanks."

"Private lessons?" she asked, "It's more expensive if you take that."

"I'd prefer it, please."

"Name?"

Harry paused for a split second before a name came to him, "Charles. Charles Porter," he replied with a smile.

Ten minutes later, he paid the necessary amount and then was led through the building to one of the rooms. He was ushered inside and the door was closed behind him. The room was fully padded and looked to be part of some kind of mental institution actually. There was a table at the far end with some weapons on it and some clothes. There were also other equipment laying on the floor next to it.

"Please take off your shoes," a voice said to his left.

Startled, he brought his hands up immediately and stepped back, his eyes wide. There was a man there. He didn't look too old, probably in his early thirties actually. He had a close-shaven head but was muscular and well-built. He smiled at Harry and his brown eyes shone with amusement as he looked at him. He was slightly taller than Harry, who was at a respectable 5 feet 9 inches already.

"I mean you no harm, Charles. In fact, I'm here to instruct you," he said.

Sure enough, Harry noticed his black belt and as he walked to the middle of the room he had this strange grace about him. He seemed well balanced and his movements were smooth, almost fluid. His hands were behind his back and his voice was strong and yet friendly.

Harry quickly took off his shoes and stepped onto the padded floor.

"I am Master Genkou, Charles. I hear you want to have a taste of all the martial arts we offer before you decide on which one or ones you would like to learn most. So let us begin," he told Harry.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Reviews please. :) Thanks! 


	5. Prison Break

**DISCLAIMER:** Guess what? I still don't own Harry Potter...

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_Prison Break_

* * *

_Martial Arts Center, fifteen days later..._

Harry had chosen to learn Judo and Tae Kwon Do. The Judo would handle throwing people, safely falling, and grappling opponents. It also helped in learning how to use the opponent's force against him or her. Tae Kwon Do would help with any attacks he would need to do. Though it had been fifteen days already, Harry was still not flexible enough to do some of the things that Master Genkou wanted him to do.

He stretched his legs a little more in a vain attempt to make them flexible faster. It was not that he could not learn fast, in fact he was supposedly the best student Master Genkou ever had. It was just that even though he knew how to do it, when to do it, and why, some of the things he still could not do.

He just needed more time and time was not something he had a luxury of. That was one thing that had him worried. He had progressed to yellow belt in such a short span of time for Tae Kwon Do. He found it particularly easy to learn but hard to accomplish since flexibility was key.

Judo was a little easier in that you don't need to be that flexible, except when the moves are being done to you. Then it would be helpful. But to actually use the throws and grapple moves you really needed smarts, speed, and strength all at the same time. But strength wasn't really as important, especially since you usually tried to use other forces such as your opponent's weight or movement and also gravity itself.

So it was that on the 18th day of July, Harry was practicing some kicks in Tae Kwon Do when he felt a familiar cold feeling. A feeling that he both feared and hated. It got stronger and the lights in the room flickered slightly.

He looked over at Master Genkou and noticed that he too felt the presence of the foul beings called Dementors. They sucked out happiness and warmth and fed on it, at the same time bringing horrible memories to people and making them feel cold and miserable.

"Dementors... here?" whispered Genkou.

Harry's neck almost snapped when his head turned at the name. "Y-You know a-a-about them?"

"Yes, I.. wait, how do you know of them?" asked his Master.

"I'm... I'm a wizard."

"So am I," said Genkou, smiling for a brief second before the lights flickered again.

That was when the feeling left and the warmth returned. Harry felt better after a short while and looked over at his Master. He would never have guessed that he was a wizard. It didn't seem like it, though he guessed that he wasn't really looking.

"You're name isn't Charles now, is it?" he asked, looking intently at Harry.

"It's Harry. Harry P-"

"Potter," finished Genkou, "It is an honor to meet such a noble hero as yourself. I thought you looked familiar"

Harry was taken aback, "I'm no hero," he stated.

"Oh, but you are. You may not admit it, you may not even feel like one, but I assure you many people look to you as their saviour. Their salvation in this darkness. You are a hero in their eyes for you brought down the terrible Dark Lord and have fought him many times and succeeded."

Harry shook his head, "I... I didn't really have much to do with it. It was my mother, you see, she sacrificed herself and..." but he could not continue because his voice had been silenced. A worried look came to his face, but he felt like he could trust Genkou so tried to quell that worry.

"I do not want to hear it, Harry Potter. I only wish to know what I know. I want to believe what I know and I would rather that you not change that." He smiled at Harry, who suddenly found that he could speak again. "You see, faith is a poweful thing Harry. Belief in what you know and what you are doing can help you accomplish so many things. Of course, keeping an open mind is good too..." he smiled.

"Sorry," he looked down.

"There is nothing to apologize for. But now that I know you are a wizard and now that you know I am a wizard, perhaps we can continue our training elsewhere? Perhaps with the help of some magic?" he asked.

Harry nodded, "That would be great. Really great. But there is one problem though... I want to train, but I don't have much time to do so..." he trailed off, frowning as he was unable to express what he wanted to say.

"Do not worry, my young pupil. Time will make itself available if you know how to ask," he said before grabbing hold of Harry. "Hold on tightly," he ordered.

Harry obeyed and gripped his arm tightly.

They disappeared with a very light pop.

* * *

_Somewhere in Europe..._

Voldemort laughed. He had succeeded. Though the last guardian had been more troublesome than all of the rest, he had finished the guardians of the tome forever. Now all he had to do was piece the information that they provided together to find the tome.

It would take time, but he knew he would succeed. He looked up at the starry night and smiled, the only witnesses to what he was to do.

"Soon, very soon..." he whispered to himself as he gazed up at something in the sky.

* * *

_Somewhere in England..._

Harry opened his eyes and saw that they were in a small garden behind a moderately-sized house. Genkou beckoned for him to follow and so he did, walking after his Master.

Genkou waved his hand and a door that Harry had not seen opened. He followed Genkou inside and knew that this was a wizard home because the inside was gigantic. They were in a large open hall with doors to either side. A long dark carpet with some runes and characters on it ran down the hall.

Turning, Genkou looked long and hard at Harry, as if contemplating something. Then he nodded his head, obviously having made some sort of decision.

Harry was still looking around when he spoke, "Harry Potter, answer me honestly and truthfully. Would you be my apprentice in that I will teach you all that I know and help you to learn?"

Harry took a moment to think that through, but inside he already knew the answer. He needed as much help and training as he could get, and from the looks of things Genkou seemed to be a very good master to train under.

"Yes," he answered simply.

"Are you willing to devote your time and to give your all to this training?"

"I am."

Genkou nodded and then he began to mutter something under his breath very fast. He closed his eyes and his right arm raised. His index finger began to glow as he began to write runes and symbols in the air with the glowing finger. After a minute of incantation and writing of runes and symbols, he closed his right hand into a fist and then punched the glowing air before him.

It was then a dome of light exploded outwards from the air before him and Harry felt very powerful magic come from Genkou. He closed his eyes and sensed that whatever Genkou did, it engulfed the entire house.

"What was that?" Harry finally asked.

Genkou looked very drained as he dropped down to one knee. He looked up at Harry and smiled, "That is what will give us the time to train."

Harry understood that, somewhat, but decided against asking about it until Genkou told him about it.

"Now, let us begin your training. First, we will train your body, for a strong body yields greater and more powerful magic. After that we shall move on to spellwork, dueling, and any other things that we may think of," Genkou said with a smile as he got up.

Harry proceeded to follow him but stopped. "Wait, Master Genkou," he called.

Genkou stopped and turned around, raising an eyebrow at Harry.

"Why are you doing this?"

Genkou turned back around and kept on walking. "That is something I will tell you when we are finished."

* * *

_Azkaban Prison_

The fortress stood in the midst of the raging sea. Enormous waves crashed against its stone walls and strong winds blew against it. Dark clouds hung over the prison, threatening to let loose a torrent of rain.

"She's getting stronger," commented one of the aurors on guard.

The dementors circled the prison, watching, waiting. There were ten aurors guarding the prison. The Ministry was short on aurors on the fight against the Death Eaters and since there were dementors guarding the prison they had no need to put a large human force there.

"Aye, that she is. You think we'll be relieved before she lets loose?" asked another.

"I doubt it."

It was in that instant that a dementor flew close by. They shook involuntarily as a slight chill crept up on them. They were protected by their shield charms, which they had on at all times, but another had come, and another. Soon, twenty dementors were circling over them, waiting for something.

"Oi! Dementors! You're supposed to be guarding the prison from down there!" cried one of the aurors.

"WANDS OUT!" cried the head of the Azkaban guard as the dementors swooped down on them, suddenly realizing that something was wrong.

Yells and screams were drowned out by the crash of the waves and the howl of the wind.

Multiple patronuses appeared, but that was when a hundred more dementors flew up from the sides of the prison and then swooped down on the ten aurors. Their patronuses flickered immediately and died.

The chill was unbearable and two aurors just dropped dead, their hearts stopped. The other aurors fell to the ground and went crazy from the sheer contact of more than a hundred dementors. They circled and flew over them, sucking any happiness to feed themselves.

It was then that loud cracks sounded and out of thin air Death Eaters arrived. At the head of them was Lucius Malfoy, his long platinum hair waving in the wind.

"Break out all the prisoners, bring as many as you can back to headquarters. The Dark Lord will need them for his army," said Lucius. He smiled as he saw the head auror of the small prison guard.

He raised his wand at him, "Avada Kedavra!" he cried and in a flash of green the man was dead.

The Death Eaters that came with him fanned out to open the cells and let their brethren free, along with some newcomers.

Alarms began to wail and the fortress got into defense mode, but because there were no longer any defenders it was useless. To the prisoners, however, it was the sound of freedom. It was the sound of their salvation.

* * *

_Ministry of Magic, that same day..._

Dumbledore massaged his temples again, closing his eyes as he paced back in forth in the Minister's office.

Behind the desk where Fudge used to sit sat Minister Bones, who had won the election held by the Wizengamot by three votes over Scrimgouer. Dumbledore had planned it all and it was going smoothly so far. Though the votes were a little too close for comfort, he had made sure to try to influence more than half of the Wizengamot to vote for Amelia.

"Who will you be appointing as your replacement, Amelia?" he asked.

"I was thinking of Cassandra Harper or possibly her brother. They are the most senior aurors here, aside from Alastor of course. But we know that he cannot and will not accept the post," she replied.

Dumbledore nodded. He had heard of the Harper siblings. Grant and Cassandra Harper. They were excellent fighters, quick thinkers, and were intelligent. He could think of no one else that could take on the task as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

"Very well then. I do suggest you take the elder sibling, he might have a little edge of experience over Cassandra. However, both are up to the task and are more than capable of the job," he agreed finally.

She nodded, "It's done then," she said with finality as she wrote something and then touched a glowing orb on her desk.

"Ashley, would you please call the Harper siblings to my office," she said.

A short reply of compliance followed and Amelia sighed, looking up at Albus Dumbledore. The de facto leader of the light, the only one that Voldemort ever feared, though she had an inkling that he was starting to fear Harry Potter too. It was a wonder how that boy faced him so much and yet lived every time. In fact, Dumbledore was the only one who probably had more encounters with Voldemort and lived.

Dumbledore stopped pacing as he felt a slight disturbance. He wasn't quite sure what it was, but a few seconds later he found out. Red lights began to flash all over the Ministry as an alarm began to wail. A loud voice echoed throughout the Ministry.

"AZKABAN BREACHED! CODE RED, ALPHA! AZKABAN BREACHED! CODE RED, ALPHA!" it repeatedly blared over and over.

Dumbledore cursed, shared a glance with Amelia, and then threw floo powder into the fireplace. He was gone in a bright green flare of flame.

* * *

_Azkaban Prison, twenty minutes later..._

Dumbledore looked around with slight nervousness. There had been hundreds of convicts at Azkaban and they were now joining the ranks of Voldemort. The Dementors had also finally shown their true allegiance.

He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody limped towards him, his wooden stump thumping on the stone floor. His magical eye was whirring and he didn't look pleased.

"What a bloody time for this time to happen. The Ministry had stripped the defenses, leaving only ten Aurors. They trusted the Dementors too much," he said angrily, "All ten are dead now and hundreds of convicts are now with Voldemort."

Dumbledore looked out over the ocean, which was slightly calmer than it had been for years now that the Dementors were no longer influencing the area. They emitted coldness and frost and had wreaked havoc on the weather in the area, but now that they were gone it was returning to normal.

"No survivors? No one left behind?" he asked, though he already knew the answer to that question long before he had even thought of asking it.

"None, Albus. All cleaned out," came the rough reply.

Dumbledore nodded, "Then there is nothing left to do here, Alastor. I will return to the Ministry, take charge of the Order for a while. Have all patrols doubled and call in everyone. I want a full meeting tonight."

Moody nodded and limped away as Dumbledore took one last sad look around him and then disappeared in a flurry of robes and a slight pop.

* * *

_Somewhere in eastern Europe..._

Voldemort hissed, his eyes searching for something. He consulted the map yet again and stroked his chin, his eyes flaring red for a moment. He looked about him again and looked a little confused, before his eyes narrowed and a smile played on his lips.

He disappeared in whirl of black smoke, reappearing high up in the air. With the smile still on his lips he waved his wand about and began to mutter a long incantation.

The spell was cast a moment later and he first saw and then sensed the protective wards and concealment spells and charms falter and fail. A very old stone building suddenly grew out of the ground, hiding in the shadow of a mountain.

Satisfied with himself, he disappeared in smoke again before appearing before the building. A quick wave of his wand assured him that there were no traps or anything else. He found the door was locked and tried to open it with a spell. It failed and he tried to blast his way through, but there were layers of special spells and enchantments on it that prevented it from being blown apart.

It was then that he remembered one of the things he had taken from one of the guardians.

He reached into one of his pockets and withdrew a small stone key. He searched the door and found a very small keyhole covered in dust. A quick wave of his wand and the dust disappeared before he inserted the key and twisted it.

The ground trembled and shook as mechanisms and gears seemed to sound from within. He heard the clicking of numerous locks and then the door swung open of its own accord, he took a step back as it did so.

Triumphant, he walked into the building.

However, ten minutes later, a blood-curdling scream came from within as he found that there was yet another clue to find the location of what he was looking for. He yelled in anger and frustration as his magic built up within him.

All of a sudden the building exploded outward and the ground trembled with such ferocity, as if the mountain was trying to uproot itself from the earth.

* * *

_Genkou's Home_

Harry woke with a start, feeling pain in his scar. It had been many weeks now since he had started training with Genkou. After a while he had finally explained to Harry what the spell he cast long before did.

It slowed down time in a particular area. Apparently he had used it before and so didn't need to do the other things necessary, such as put certain runes on stones and put them around the perimeter of the area of effect.

There were two side effects, one good and the other bad. The good was that while in the area of effect of the spell, you also aged slowly and thus could stay years and still only age months in the real world. However, whoever cast the spell ages a number of years each time he does cast it. It is because of the amount of sheer energy required to cast the spell, which if the caster does not have enough, will take some of that caster's life force to fuel the spell. The number of years aged depends on the power of the user and how much power is needed after his power is used to fuel the spell.

He sighed and rubbed his eyes. He was still learning Occlumency and Legilimency, though he was picking it up fast. Yet for some reason Voldemort had gotten through to him that night. He tried to remember what the vision was, but all he could remember about it was that Voldemort was looking for something and he hadn't yet found it.

Thinking that a good thing, he finally decided to get up. He glanced at the clock in his room and saw that he was thirty minutes early, but time was still of the essence. The spell lets you go two years for every one day in the real world, but even then it might not be enough. Voldemort had years of experience over him and he hoped that this might help somewhat.

He walked into the kitchen to fix himself some breakfast, but found that Genkou was already there. He looked up as Harry entered the kitchen and nodded, "Your early." he stated.

Harry nodded back at him, "Yes, Master. I couldn't go back to sleep," he replied as he got some of the food that was already there.

He ate quickly and silently, neither of them talking. Genkou was looking out the window, his arms behind his back, thinking of something.

"Master, I have wondered... why is it that no one uses this spell? It is a very good spell, though the trade-off of years might not be that good," he said.

Genkou didn't seem to have heard him or at least was silent and unmoving for a time. Harry watched him from behind, but then proceeded to finish his food. Once he was done, however, Genkou finally stirred.

"Time, Harry, should not be meddled with. It is only under the direst and worst of scenarios that it should be manipulated," he began, pausing for a moment. "The reason nobody uses the spell is because no one really knows it exists. The Unspeakables might have a prototype of a spell of some sorts, but it is not as powerful as what I have done. This is because I and a few others invented this spell.

It took many years to research and many more to perfect. Even then, we could not get rid of the side effect. The power to cast it was just too great. Eventually, the others I worked on with it passed on, until I am the only one who remains. In fact, I may be the only one who knows of its existence, other than you, my apprentice."

Harry looked in wonder at his mentor, at his master. He hardly knew anything about him, for all they've really done was train and train some more. Perhaps when all this was over, he could get to know the man. Perhaps...

"I am old, Harry. Far older than you might think. This is one of the reasons why I have decided to help you. You see, I've been watching you for some time and I noticed the potential. I noticed the power within you, struggling to be free and to be used. I will die, sometime soon I imagine, and for that I must impart what I know unto someone who needs it, who deserves it. But that is only a fragment of the reason why I am training you now," he told Harry before falling into silence.

Harry nodded, though Genkou was turned around he knew he sensed him nodding.

"Let us begin," Genkou finally said, turning on his heel and heading for the training room, Harry following closely in his wake.

* * *

_22 months later..._

Harry's body was hard. He had grown taller and had filled out a little bit more. Muscle was there where once there was only bone. Though he was athletic because of Quidditch, he could now do anything he wanted, really. He was extremely flexible and had already mastered much of Tae Kwon Do, Judo, and Karate-do. He had also been taught other moves and things that he could do while in battle.

Today was his final test, before he would be considered fit enough to begin training magically. He would continue to train physically, but it would be less and less until Harry would finally have to do physically train on his own time. He was already in top shape and form, which is why today he would finally spar with Genkou.

He had dreaded and wanted this day at the same time. He dreaded it for he knew that Genkou had far more experience than he had, but he also wanted it so he could see how far along he had gotten. Training with enchanted dummies was hard, but against someone like Genkou he would have to be better than he ever had been.

"Are you ready, my apprentice?" Genkou asked, standing still twenty paces ahead of him. The floor and the walls were padded, just in case. The room was rectangular and in fact was large enough to be considered a hall.

"I am ready," Harry said as they bowed simultaneously.

"Then let us begin!" Genkou exclaimed, going into his fighting stance.

Harry did too and both inched closer to each other, their feet light and yet their minds going a million miles a second. Harry made a sudden fake move forward, which Genkou read perfectly and so didn't move.

Smiling, he suddenly jumped up in the air, spun, and made a sweeping kick aimed at Harry's head. Harry bent backwards and the foot swished inches from his face as his hand grabbed it and pulled, twisting his body as he did so.

Genkou was thrown over Harry, but he twisted in midair and landed softly on his feet. Grinning, he charged at Harry again, but faked a kick to the left, which Harry fell for. He was rewarded with a whack to his right arm, though he had moved instinctively away from the blow to lessen its effects.

He jumped backwards and kicked at Genkou, who blocked it with ease and moved forward with lightning speed. Harry matched it and they fought each other close quarters, trying to break through the other's defense.

Finally, Genkou shouted triumphantly as he found an opening. His fist collided with Harry's left side, making him wince. The fist suddenly grabbed his shirt, a foot went in front of his, and he was flung to the ground.

Harry twisted in time and rolled as he hit the ground. He grunted but then rolled back to his feet.

Genkou nodded before resuming his attack.

Harry blocked a blow with his elbow, ducked as the next arm came and swished over his head, and grabbed the arm over him. He tried to get it into a lock but Genkou slipped out of it and a kick connected against Harry's stomach. His abs held and he was only pushed back a little as air left his lungs quickly.

His eyes widened as another kick came, but he dodged it and then managed to land a kick of his own at the back of Genkou's leg, which made his knee fold in and collapse. He was, however, back on his feet a moment later and Harry's axe kick hit the padded floor.

Genkou was still smiling as he suddenly came in faster and more determined than before, as if someone had turned up the difficulty level on a video game. Harry was hit multiple times, but he was still standing as he finally figured out what Genkou was trying to do.

He faked being hit hard and Genkou tried to sieze the chance and grabbed Harry's shirt. It was then that Harry reversed the grapple and threw Genkou over him, but not before his master realized it and saved himself.

A quick sweeping leg came out, but Harry jumped and then rolled away before standing and recollecting himself. He winced slightly at a few hits that he knew were going to be bruises, but pain was not a factor now. He could block it well.

"You have improved greatly. Let us continue until one is truly down," his master said.

Harry only nodded in response as they circled each other. A fake tested his master's reflexes, which were very fast, but he bit on the fake and Harry managed to get close enough to lock his arm. His master, however, had other plans and jumped up in the air and slid his arm out of the lock somehow.

Harry turned and ducked at the same time as a leg swept over him, and he instantly launched himself forward. They both fell to the ground as one tried to get a hold on the other. They rolled around for a few minutes, gasping and straining, but eventually they broke and then fought again.

A punch aimed at his face stopped short as his arm, with his further enhanced reflexes, caught his master's wrist. He pushed the hand aside and pressed his own attack, but he could tell that his master was not fully trying. He was really only testing his pupil, who he had to admit was doing very well.

Fifteen minutes later, Harry tapped out of a hold that his master had finally locked into and it was over. Both were sweating and breathing hard, but Harry was worse off.

"You did very well. I am impressed. All you need now is more time and if you keep practicing you might just be better than me someday," he said with a grin.

Harry smiled back, "You weren't trying your hardest though, were you?" but the question was answered by a slight shrug.

"Let's cool down, stretch, and then we can test your magical abilities," said Genkou.

Harry nodded, panting still, but his heartrate was getting back to normal. The adrenaline in his blood still made him very alert and tense, but the cool down and stretching would help ease that.

It was then that he wondered how his friends were doing and how the real world was.

* * *

_Ministry of Magic, same day..._

The Ministry was in full lockdown. Every entrance was heavily guarded and all available Ministry workers were called in. All aurors as well, save for those who could not be recalled.

Amelia Bones had an emergency meeting of all the department heads and so it was that she was sitting at the head of a long dark wooden table listening as the heads of the departments argued with each other.

"SILENCE!" she finally said, having enough. They quieted down immediately and turned their gazes over to the new Minister.

"How many were released?" Amelia asked.

Grant Harper, the new DMLE Head, was a moderately tall man with dark brown hair and brown eyes. He had a few scars all over his body, but it was not as bad as Moody and his nose was still intact. His sister sat behind him as his second-in-command of the DMLE. She had long black hair and blue eyes, which was strange but no one really asked them about it.

"Minister, we're still checking the records, but it looks to be between two-hundred and two-hundred fifty."

Everyone in the room reacted, some gasped, others choked, while some cursed. Amelia was one who cursed, her eyes ablaze.

"This is a serious problem and I want all departments to communicate and find a way to strike back. Grant, I want you to come up with a plan for a counter-attack. Utilize any and all means necessary to hit back and hit hard," she ordered.

Grant nodded his understanding.

"Jacobs, I want you to take a team from your Department of Magical Transportation and double check all our travel wards and security in all Ministry lands. I also want stricter control of floo's and cooperate with the Unspeakables on finding a way to trace portkey trails. Perhaps try to monitor apparitions a bit more, see if there is anything suspicious," she said.

"But Minister, we can only monitor apparitions if they come within range of our scanners, which are placed at random areas. Furthermore, we can only truly monitor apparitions if they are registered on our list. There may be a way to track Portkeys though and I will look into that along with the Unspeakables, if they will lend a hand. Perhaps they may send someone with my team to further help with the checking of our transportation security as well," said Jacobs, a short man with brown hair and hazel eyes.

Amelia pursed her lips but nodded, turning to the head of the Department of Mysteries, "Vincent, I want you to assist the other departments in any way possible, so long as it has something related with the war against the Death Eaters. I want results, understand? Not excuses, not blunders. Results! It's time we went on the bloody offensive, people," she looked each of them in the eye before continuing.

"I want you to equip our aurors with any new things you may have come up with that may help. Which reminds me, all department heads are to submit to me a count of how many personnel you have. I want to know their names, their jobs, and what you think of them. Travis," she spoke to the head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, "I want you to start contacting any magical creatures that may be of help. Dumbledore was right, we should have tried to approach the giants. We have already lost control of the Dementors and Dumbledore tells me much of the giants in England are with Voldemort as well. Try to reach out to any other magical beings," she said.

Travis, an old man with thinning gray hair and numerous wrinkles and scars, nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"Marson, send a missive to all magical governments that we are in contact with. Tell them of our present situation and ask for any cooperation and coordination. Any help they can give us will be greatly appreciated. Also tell them of the threat Voldemort poses to the rest of the world and such, you know how to deal with them. I would also like to meet with any Ministers of other governments, if at all possible. We will need others to help us. I have already informed Dumbledore that him and his Order of the Phoenix will have the cooperation of the Ministry so long as we both help each other out," she finished.

There were slight murmurs around the table as she thought of anything else to say. Finding none, she dismissed them and headed for her own office. Aurors flanked her and a hitwizard stood directly outside her office door. He bowed his head to her and she nodded unconsciously at him before shutting the door behind her. The aurors that flanked her staying on the outside room of her office.

She sat heavily on the chair and looked at the lone picture on her table. She was hugging her husband firmly while their daughter waved at the camera from between them. They were smiling and happy. A tear formed in her eye before she wiped it away and shook her head. She had to be strong, any weakness would let the already weakened state of the Ministry and the English Wizarding World collapse.

A chute came down from the ceiling and deposited the next day's newspapers such as the Daily Prophet, Diagon Daily, and other smaller newspapers. The Quibbler was also included, seeing as its popularity spiked over the last few years.

Amelia sighed, she knew that this was still the preliminary writing and had not been sent out yet, but she also knew that little of it would change once it got out tomorrow. The front page headline read **AZKABAN BROKEN, DEATH EATERS INCREASE**.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Reviews please. :) Thanks! 


	6. Time, Powers, and Charms

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own Harry Potter. :(

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_Time, Powers, and Charms_

* * *

_Genkou's Residence, the last day of the spell..._

Harry James Potter grunted as Genkou cast the Cruciatus on him again. He had been doing so regularly the past week. Essentially, he was teaching Harry how to ignore pain, even such terrible pain as the Cruciatus. Of course, in the beginning, he wasn't so good at blocking it, but after it being done to him multiple times over a course of several days, he had found out how to block it.

"Good, Harry, very good," Genkou said, lifting the curse and nodding to himself.

Harry grinned, he hadn't enjoyed it at first but now he found that it was a good thing to learn. To block pain. One of the main reasons why wizards lose in duels and such is because of pain. It diverts the concentration and thoughts of that person and it also serves as a weakening point. It was good to learn how to control pain, though of course prolonged ignorance of it would be deadly, but for just that small moment so that he or she can concentrate on winning.

"Once more," Genkou warned him in advance.

Harry steeled himself as he heard the words softly come from his master's mouth, "_Crucio_..."

Pain hit him for a fleeting second and then he dampened it and slowly removed it from his consciousness. In effect, the Cruciatus curse could be beaten simply by honing the mind and training it to stop pain or dampen the pain. Harry smiled as he successfully accomplished blocking pain once more from the Cruciatus curse. Something that a lot of wizards and witches could not do even if they tried.

"Excellent. We can proceed with your magical training once I get the spell running again," Genkou informed him with a grin.

Harry stood a little shakily, but then he was fine. "So, what now?"

Genkou looked at him thoughtfully before turning and walking out of the room they had used. Harry followed him, as he was used to doing since Genkou didn't seem to be really talkative in times like this. He just knew that he was supposed to follow, so he did.

They wound through the hallways of the house, which was truly much larger than it looked like from the outside. Genkou stopped before a pair of thick, large wooden doors. Engraved upon them were multiple small runes and a big dragon in the middle where the handles were. He muttered something and there was a brief glow of blue light before it vanished.

The doors opened and they stepped inside. At first the bright light blinded Harry slightly, since Genkou liked the hallways to be relatively dark most of the time. As his eyes adjusted, he found that he was in an enormous library. One that could very well rival Hogwarts' own. In fact, Harry thought that it might even be a tad bit larger than the library at Hogwarts.

"If Hermione saw this, she would flip," he said to no one in particular.

Genkou turned, looking at him quizzically, "Hermione?"

"A friend, Master. One of my best friends..." he replied quickly.

Nodding, Genkou proceeded into the library. "I want you to read," he said simply.

Harry just looked at him funny, "Read what?"

Genkou waved his hand at the dozens of bookcases, "Everything."

* * *

Several hours later, Harry closed the second book he had finished in that time. The books were ordered by theme and topic and he went straight to the offensive and defensive spells area. The first book he read was a very informative book titled _Useful Offensive Spells for Fighting. _It had a few spells that Harry had never heard of, which he took to note of and could cast easily. 

The second book he had read was on defensive spells and was titled _Shielding Yourself: A Guide to Defense_. It was also a very informative and helpful book. After all, the only way Harry knew how to defend himself was to either dodge the spells or use _Protego_.

He sighed, at this rate it would certainly take him years to read all of the books. Cringing at that thought, he sighed again. Of course, he actually enjoyed reading and thought it was important, but he just knew he couldn't read for hours on end like this. Especially since he read pretty slowly.

He eventually came to ask Genkou about it while they ate their dinner that night. That night they were having some steaks with rice, vegetables, and other food.

"Master, I cannot read all the books in time. It would take many years," he said, "Especially at the rate that I am reading, it might just take me even longer than most."

There was silence yet again, which Harry was used to, while Genkou seemed to be thinking of something. Possibly digging into his memory for any answers or helpful advice. He looked up at Harry after swallowing some of his food.

"There are two spells which will be most helpful to you. The first would help you read much faster and absorb all the information better, the second would help you organize it in your mind and understand it. Not that you need the latter that much, of course," Genkou informed him and then instructed Harry on how to use the spells.

Elated, Harry thanked him and as they finished their dinner, the house shook slightly. Alert and his wand already in hand, Harry looked around suspiciously and then at Genkou, who had merely closed his eyes.

"The spell is falling. In a few minutes it will be July 19th. I will cast the spell soon after," he said slowly, before opening his eyes.

Harry wondered if he was okay, after all he did say it took some of your life force away every time you used it.

"I shall be fine, young apprentice. It is my life and it is what I want to do," he said simply.

Harry nodded, his emerald eyes looking sad for a moment before it was replaced by his emotionless eyes once more. He had been taught not to show emotion so that he would not only be more intimidating and also more concentrated, but so that he would also be mysterious. After all, giving away your emotions could also give away thoughts in some way and that wasn't good at all.

Genkou stood then, waving his hand and making the food, silverware, and china disappear. Harry made a mental note to ask him to teach him wandless magic as he followed Genkou back to the spot where he had cast the spell before.

The house shook again, this time a little harder and for a longer period of time. Harry wondered when the appropriate time was, but decided to just wait patiently. Another thing he learned. Patience. It truly was a virtue, that he now knew for truth.

The house shook one final time, the walls trembling, and then Genkou began to chant and draw symbols once more. Harry wasn't paying much attention, however, because he thought he saw something fly by the window. True enough, a white snowy owl suddenly appeared, its yellow eyes wide. It pecked at the window and Harry looked at his master, but he did not notice for he was concentrating on the spell.

Harry quickly and silently ran to the window, opened it, let the owl in and then closed the window before running back to the spot where he had stood earlier. His steps were light, his breathing steady, and his heart normal the whole time. Smiling at the owl, he stroked it with his hand.

Genkou punched the air in front of him and the spell exploded into effect. The house shook slightly and then it was done.

Genkou looked pale and exhausted. He fell to the floor this time, his breathing ragged and his eyes a little misty.

"MASTER!" yelled Harry as Hedwig flew off his shoulder to perch elsewhere once he sped towards mentor.

He quickly lifted him up and carried him to the small medical wing of the house, fully stocked with all the necessary equipment and materials. He laid down Genkou on the bed and quickly sped around the clinic, getting a few things ready. This was one of the latest things that he had learned, how to heal and be useful in a clinic or healing area.

He ran diagnostic spells on Genkou and found that his magical aura had faded slightly and that his powers were drained. He also looked a little more aged than before. He did not know how he kept looking so young, but now he truly looked pretty old. His hair had some white streaks and gray streaks and he had a few more wrinkles here and there.

He smiled as Harry gave him a few potions to help him restore his energy and magic as well as make him feel better and numb any pain if there was any. Not knowing what else to do, Harry drew up a chair and sat down next to his mentor, waiting.

* * *

_Ministry of Magic_

Grant Harper rubbed his bloodshot eyes. He hadn't gotten any sleep yet, though he actually rarely got any sleep ever since the war 'officially' started, this time he really didn't get any. He was about to crash and he knew it, but he needed to keep going.

Reports kept coming in of sporadic encounters with Death Eaters. So far, two aurors were dead and three injured while they had captured five Death Eaters and killed four. The captured ones were already being questioned and Grant had given explicit orders to use any means necessary of finding out any information. Location of hideouts was the top priority followed by naming all the Death Eaters they knew, and if possible, where they were currently.

He was reading a report on what one of the Death Eaters had said when the orb on his desk flashed. He grabbed hold of it. "Yes?" he asked.

"Sir, Auror Shaklebolt would like a word."

"Send him in," came the reply as he continued reading.

The door to his office opened and closed as a tall black man with a golden earring on his left ear walked in. He stood at attention, waiting for Grant to notice him.

Grant closed the file of the report and instructed his secretary to call auror Hayfield and to tell him to act on the information as he deemed appropriate. Hayfield was one of the more senior of the aurors and Merlin knew there were very few of them as it is.

"At ease, Kingsley. What do you need?" Grant asked, taking another sip of the WakeUp coffee he had, which gave him a jolt of energy.

"Well sir, I wanted to personally hand this in to you. As you know, I am also a member of the Order of the Phoenix," Grant nodded at this, "And we have received information on an upcoming attack on several safehouses and secure locations. There is also a plan coming into fruition of an attack on Diagon Alley and even possibly the Ministry itself."

Grant looked skeptical, but right now they didn't have much information so he would take what he got. "Show me," he instructed Kingsley.

The auror gave him a thin folder with a few pages of parchment in it. There were plans, maps, and in some cases detailed instructions on how and where to attack. Dumbfounded, Grant looked up and asked where Kingsley had gotten the information.

"Suffice to say, sir, that we have someone working on the inside. I cannot say who, exactly," was the reply.

Grant nodded, still surprised that the Order had someone working for them on the inside while the Ministry had no one. He shook his head at that.

"Very well, thank you Kingsley. Rest assured we will act on this information quickly. Will that be all?"

Kingsley nodded, "I will give you more information as soon as we can find it. All I can say right now is that the Order has found the locations of two Death Eater sites. We are planning to assault them sometime soon and hopefully surprise them enough to capture anyone and anything that may give us more information."

Grant narrowed his eyes, "And why do you not tell us where they are? The Ministry can handle this..." he asked.

Kingsley looked straight at him and said, "Because the Ministry has been infiltrated. There are Death Eaters in our midst, sir," and with that Kingsley left, leaving behind a troubled head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

* * *

_Grimmauld Place, Order of the Phoenix Headquarters_

Dumbledore cleared his throat, silencing the chatter around the room. Even though it had been magically enlarged, the room was still packed. Almost everyone from the Order was there, save of course for Snape, who would arrive later on. He looked around the room, his blue eyes scanning the crowd before him.

Alastor, Minerva, Arthur, Molly, Fred and George, Bill, Charlie, Dedalus, Elphias, his brother Aberforth, Arabella, Mundungus, Hagrid, Hestia, Remus, Sturgis, Kingsley, Tonks, Harold, Alten, Christopher, Filius (who had joined on Dumbledore's insistance), Markuz, Jason, Krista, Evan and his brother Evin, and a few others.

They all looked at him intently, wondering what he was going to talk about.

"Azkaban was broken last night," he informed them, his voice hard. There were gaps and murmurs all around before quieting down again.

"The Ministry hasn't confirmed, but there appears to be at least two-hundred new Death Eaters. The werewolves are on the move and Voldemort has already called the giants, who are beginning to muster their forces. The Dementors have already betrayed the Ministry in favor of Voldemort and as far as we know recruitment for his dark army has stretched abroad," he continued, his voice grave.

"As of today, the Ministry is in all out war and will coordinate with us against Voldemort and his forces. We will strike back at them today, for we now know of two certain Death Eater hideouts. Severus will be arriving shortly to tell us more about them before we strike. Know that now, more than ever, we must stand strong and stay firm. We must keep united, else we all fail.

Do not be afraid. The light will always conquer the darkness, if we falter now than all will be lost. The lives of the Wizarding World depend on our actions in this war and the future of the world may depend on it too. However, I do not keep you here by force. If there are any who wish to leave the Order now and maybe go into hiding, please do so. I will release you from your oaths.

I must warn you though," he paused, looking each of them in the eye, "That will only delay the inevitable."

He stopped for a moment as the others began to take this in. No one moved, no one dared to, and no one wanted to. Small whispers of conversation began as they spoke to each other, discussing what they had just learned and what they would do.

"Albus, when do you plan to attack?" asked Moody, his magical eye deadly still.

Dumbledore frowned, "I am waiting for Severus until I make that decision, Alastor."

Remus suddenly piped up, "What about Harry? You do know that the wards are already beginning to fade around Privet Drive.." he said.

Dumbledore eyed him, "He will be moved once they have completely fallen, for as long as he is there they will remain. If he leaves at anytime during these last few days, the wards and protections will fade much faster..." he replied.

"He can stay with us, Albus," Molly Weasley suggested.

Dumbledore looked thougthful for a moment, "I shall think upon it. He might be safer here, not that I doubt the protections around the Weasley residence," he said hastily.

Remus looked at him again, "What if you just set up your own wards around it to add to the ones already there. Surely then it will be much safer? Besides, he'll be happier there would he not?"

Dumbledore looked a little annoyed, but then his face returned to its normal emotionless state as his eyes twinkled slightly. "Yes, that may be, but I do believe the enchantments here are powerful enough and that since it is under a Fidelius, it will prove even better," he replied.

Molly nodded, "Well, he won't have to stay here for too long, I would hope. Perhaps he can come over the last week or two before school," she said to herself mostly.

A moment later, a slamming door could be heard as well as the muffled yells of Mrs. Black. Severus entered the room then, his cloak billowing behind him in his trademark fashion. His greasy hair shone in the light of the room.

"Headmaster, forgive me for my... tardiness," he said in his usual unconcerned tone. "The Dark Lord had instructed me to brew something for him, but we can speak of that later.."

Dumbledore nodded, "Severus, please inform the Order of what you have gleaned about the two Death Eater hideouts. It would be most helpful."

Snape nodded and looked around, "The first Death Eater hideout is located not too far from Diagon alley. It is in an abandoned apartment building and houses thirty Death Eaters. It shouldn't be too hard, since most of them are raw recruits, here is a map of the building and the surrounding area..." he continued, his wand appearing in his hand as he duplicated a map and floated them to the Order members.

* * *

_Genkou residence_

It had taken two days for Genkou to regain enough energy and magic to function properly again, though Harry noticed he was a little strained and weaker than before. The toll of the spell was probably greater than he thought.

Through those two days, Harry had zipped by dozens of books in the library. Though he was nowhere even close to a fourth done, he was getting there. He was nearly done on the Offensive and Defensive area and was moving on to other topics such as Dark Arts, Defense Against Dark Arts, Arithmancy (which he was surprisingly good at), and some Occlumency and Legilimency.

"How are you, master?" Harry asked.

Genkou smiled, "Could be worse, but it is not, thankfully. Now, did you get that book I told you to get?"

"Yes, master," he said as he floated over a book to him.

He grabbed out from the air and flipped through the pages, until he got to the one he wanted. He raised his hand and waved it, but then frowned as nothing happened. He tried again, but again there was nothing. Sighing, his wand appeared out of nowhere and then he did it again, this time whatever spell he was trying to cast worked. He muttered something under his breath as he made a complex motion with his wand. Seconds later, Harry felt a tingling sensation come from his head and work its way down to his toes, like some kind of scanner.

It was then that his wand floated out of his hand and on a piece of parchment that he had gotten and placed on the table next to them, it began to burn something into the paper with a red beam. Smoke drifted off from the paper as it wrote furiously. In a minute, it floated back to him and he picked the parchment up. His eyes scanned it and he looked surprised for a moment as he raised his eyebrow.

He looked between Harry and the parchment for a while before he read through it again.

The curiosity was killing him, but he patiently waited for his master to tell him the results. He was not sure what that test was for, but he knew it was important for some reason. Otherwise Genkou would never have done it.

"Harry, how old are you again?" he asked in a thoughtful voice.

"Sixteen. I'll be turning seventeen in eleven... real world days," he said.

"My apprentice, are you aware of what the _Cohibeo Potentia_ spell does?" Genkou asked, looking troubled and thoughtful at the same time.

Harry thought for a moment, but he could not remember ever hearing or reading about it so he shook his head, "No, master."

"It is, essentially a power repressor. It restrains someone's power and represses their true magical strength. It is not an easy spell to master, in fact extremely difficult. I have tried to cast it multiple times and have only succeeded once before. It is also not a common spell someone would use, especially on a child," and with that he looked at Harry directly in the eyes.

A cold feeling of fear gripped him, who would put a block on his power? How could someone do that? _Who_ would do that? His mind began to race at the implications that someone close to him may have done it. But the only person who could would be...

"Dumbledore..." he whispered.

Genkou nodded, "I suspected so. He would be the only one capable of doing so, unless of course Voldemort did that to you..." he trailed off.

It was also possible, but Dumbledore was more... logical. He had more contact with Harry and Harry also didn't really watch him because he trusted him. Well, used to trust him.

"So, what are we going to do?" Harry asked, looking questioningly at his mentor.

"We must remove the block immediately so that you can get used to your full powers and so that magical maturity does not kill you. You see, if you have a power block when your magic matures, it will... explode within you. It's like turning on a hose and then plugging the end of the hose," he explained.

Harry gulped, his eyes wide. He could have died! Anger rose in him as well as nervousness. However the biggest feeling was relief that he had met Genkou and that he had spotted the block.

"How are we going to remove it?" Harry asked.

"I think that you should lie down for this. I will explain to you how I did it at a later time, when you are more... experienced. You would not understand if I told you now," replied his mentor.

Harry lay down on a couch as Genkou moved to stand over Harry's head, which was on one end of the couch. He put his left hand on Harry's forehead and held him down tightly.

"Forgive me," he said.

Harry looked up, puzzled, at him. "Forgive you for what?"

"The pain. But it cannot be helped, once the block is gone your repressed magic will burst out. Imagine breaking a dam while the river itself is overflowing."

Harry winced, "Are you su-" but he was cut off as Genkou tapped Harry's forehead with his wand and then reached out with his magic. Harry could feel his magic inside him, heading for something... then he felt it, the block. It was like there were tubes of magic leading into his body and the main tube was clogged up with something.

Genkou wrapped his magic around the block and then applied more power as he gripped it and began to slowly pull it out and dissolve it at the same time. Harry could feel his magic getting stronger and then suddenly, without warning, he felt the block disintegrate and then an explosion of pain erupted within him. Pain that he could not block even if he had tried.

He yelled as magic long supressed came to him and filled him. Then he screamed in agony once more before darkness fell on him.

* * *

Harry woke up a week later, his mind still a little foggy. He wondered what happened, but then it all came back to him. The power block, removing it, then power rushing to him, and then blinding, searing pain unlike anything he had ever experienced before. Then there was darkness. 

He tried to sit up, but his muscles were sluggish and didn't respond that well. He was in the clinic and then that's when he noticed something different. He could... feel things. He sensed his own magic, which he barely did before. It was so much stronger now. It felt like he had a match of power before but now had a bonfire.

He could feel the magic off of his surroundings, the spell that monitored his vital signs, the orb above him that measured his heartrate and pressure, the nutritional potion that was being held up by a spell, the other magical things in the room, and most of all he could sense Genkou's magical aura. It was pretty powerful, but his own felt like it was about the same level, maybe even more. He didn't know really because he couldn't truly judge auras... yet.

It was then that he felt his mentor enter the clinic, obviously aware of his consciousness.

"Awake, I see. It was about time," he greeted him.

"Good to see you to, mentor of mine," came the hoarse reply. He wondered about that, but Genkou answered the question for him.

"You were screaming a lot."

Harry nodded, or at least he thought he nodded. His mind was still blurry and his nerves sluggish.

Genkou checked the medical equipment that hovered over him and nodded, satisfied.

"How long before I'm... normal?" he asked.

Genkou chuckled at that. The boy was far from normal as far as he was concerned, but he didn't voice that out loud. It wouldn't do to remind him of that.

"An hour at the most, you should be getting back to _normal _very soon," he said, emphasizing the word.

Harry smiled and sure enough he was starting to feel a little bit better.

"Oh! Almost forgot, you're owl brought you something."

Harry heard a hoot come from the corner and a flap of wings as Hedwig came to rest next to him. She hooted again and blinked, her large yellow eyes following his every move. He reached out and stroked her feathers, smiling.

"Heya girl, how are you? Sorry about leaving you like that, this was... kind of a spur of the moment thing," he explained.

She hooted as if in understanding and Harry felt Genkou's presence leave as he went off somewhere. That was a strange thing. He suddenly realized that he could sense the magic around him, especially coming from him. He roughly estimated, after a brief concentrated moment, that his powers had indeed significantly increased. He even compared it to Genkou's and roughly estimated that he was at an equal power level and perhaps even stronger now.

Frightened at that fact, he pushed the thought away and looked back at Hedwig, who streched her leg before him, a letter tied to it.

He had forgotten about Hedwig having brought something to him and mentally smacked himself as he extracted the letter from Hedwig's leg. She hooted at him and eyed him with her yellow eyes, blinking quickly as she tilted her head.

Harry unfolded the letter, wondering who it had come from. He read it aloud for both of them, though he wondered why he thought Hedwig would understand. Well, she did understand him most of the time though, which was wierd in itself already.

_Harry Potter,_

_We must meet. Come to King's Cross Station, August 5th, and board the 9:15am train to Doncaster. It's a GNER train. You will be met upon your arrival. The fate of the world rests on your action, I suggest you be there. You may bring a companion, if you so choose. Everything will be explained in person._

_Gray_

Harry read the letter twice more in his head before looking at Hedwig. She wouldn't accept a letter from someone who would intend him harm. He was sure that she could sense if someone did, and besides, she would never have come to him if she didn't think the sender of the letter was evil. Or perhaps she was confunded or bewitched, but he dismissed that thought.

She didn't look bewitched and Genkou would have certainly picked up on it somehow. He was sure.

"Hedwig, did the sender of the letter have any intent to hurt me?" he asked out of the blue as he inwardly thought to himself that he was going bonkers.

Hedwig hooted and shook her head, blinking several times.

Surprised yet again, he smiled and stroked her snowy feathers a bit more before she flew off somewhere, presumably to some place Genkou had given her to stay at. He felt his mentor's presence heading towards him as he sat up with a slight struggle.

His muscles still felt strange, as if newly made, and his entire body felt different for some reason. He reached for his glasses and put them on, but found that they were very tight on his head.

Genkou entered the room and watched as Harry tried to get his glasses off his face. After a while he finally succeeded and grumbled something about "stupid glasses... so small..."

With a shake of his head and a wave of his wand, Genkou enchanted the glasses to conform to whatever head it was put on. Harry smiled as he put it on easily this time. He then leapt onto his feet, only to buckle a bit, but he remained upright.

Genkou watched him as he wobbled around, his steps a bit strange and his balance slightly off. Harry looked confused and that was when it finally hit him. He felt different because he was different. He seemed... taller than before. He used to be about as tall as Genkou, but was now about two inches over him. He also felt a tiny bit bigger.

"Finally noticed, then?" said an amused Genkou who conjured a full-length mirror before him.

Harry studied himself and saw that he had indeed changed. He had a little bit more muscle on him than previously and he had grown taller. A small spell from Genkou informed him that he was exactly six feet tall. Well, give or take a millimeter or two.

"Has this ever... " Harry trailed off as Genkou banished the mirror. His mentor nodded and he felt relieved, though Genkou didn't have the heart to tell him that it only happened to very powerful wizards and then again it was still rare because very few of them had power blocks put on them.

"Damn, I'm sexy!" he exclaimed, flashing a smile.

Genkou rolled his eyes and turned around as Harry followed him out of the clinic, still a bit wobbly but getting there.

* * *

"Your powers have grown considerably, they more than doubled since the power block was broken," informed Genkou, "You have the potential to become a very powerful wizard, Harry." he said. Perhaps even one of the most powerful, he added in his head. He had never seen anything or anyone like it before. 

"Let's run a few more tests," said his mentor, who flicked his wand this way and that as certain spells turned green or red. Whenever the spell turned green, the floating parchment in front of him would suddenly have some writing appear on it. The list looked quite long and Harry felt a little angry about that. Why does it have to be him? he wondered, before pushing the question away. He didn't want to deal with that at the moment.

"Well, let's see... you have quite the assortment of skills, apprentice. You also have tremendous potential. Beastmastery, the ability to speak to any creatures, as well as master linguist. Any human language will come easy to you, as long as you work at it. You have the ability to become some animagus, which is strange since the test usually tells you specifically what animal you are to be... we shall look into that later," he paused for a moment, as if filing that thought away.

"You have the makings of a master at charms and transfigurations and spellwork will come easy to you. You will be above the average wizard in potions, but not a true master at it. You have the potential to cast wandlessly and it says that not only are you just normally fast in regards to reflexes and speed, but your magic also magnifies and focuses it so it's even faster. You might also have a little magically enhanced strength in you if I'm getting this right," he frowned but then continued on.

"You have the makings of a master occlumens and..." Genkou's eyes widened and his lips formed into a frown for a second before it disappeared. His eyes flicked from the parchment to Harry and back again.

"And...?" Harry said, unable to resist his curiosity.

"It is better off if we not go into this just yet. We should wait, my apprentice, before I reveal this to you and we train on this matter. Not only is it dangerous if you are not experienced, but it is also very difficult and if we start now you will not be able to concentrate on the other things," his master said seriously, his brown eyes revealing nothing.

Harry nodded, his curiosity truly picqued now, but he did not argue with his mentor. He did say they would go over it later on though, which was better than not telling him at all.

"So, what do we start with?"

"Let's go by subject, shall we? It will make things easier and you will learn faster if we do one thing at a time," he suggested.

Harry nodded, "Will we still do physical training as well?"

Genkou looked at him and broke into a grin, "Of course. Meet me in the padded room every day at six," and at this Harry groaned but nodded his acknowledgement.

"Now, let us start with... charms. I love charms," Genkou added as he walked away.

Harry shook his head as he followed his mentor, eager to start his magical training.

* * *

_Three months into training..._

Harry was progressing very quickly. He had already surpassed Hogwarts' curriculum, which Genkou suspiciously had a copy of, and was already messing around with his own made-up charms or possibly charms someone else had made-up that he also thought of. He was, at the moment, learning how to cast multiple spells at once, which was helpful in a fight.

He cast a silencing charm, engorgement charm, cutting charm, and severing charm at the same time. Though it also drained his magic faster, he had so much of it that it was not as bad as it could have been. His simulated and very animated opponent had cast a shield to protect himself, but the sheer power of Harry's charms broke through the barrier, not without weakening themselves, but still strong enough to perform their job.

Genkou banished the target and conjured a new one, which he then said was more powerful than the previous one. Harry, always up for the challenge, tried to do attack it with charms again. He succeeded once more, but it took a bit longer. However, he was well aware that a stationary target was different from a moving one and mentioned it to Genkou, who shook his head.

"Not yet, apprentice. Soon," was all he said.

Harry then spent the rest of the day practicing every charm he had learned so far and also reading through the charms section of the vast library. He had thanked Genkou over and over again for the spells that had helped him go through the books almost four times as fast as he should have been reading. He had already cleaned out the offensive spells section, his mind bustling with all the spells he had learned, and was over halfway done with the defensive spells section.

He was still a third of the way through Charms and had barely started on any of the other sections in the library, of which there were many.

Harry was reading a book titled _Charming Your Way to Victory_ when he heard the familiar flapping of wings and the rush of wind near him. He also felt the familiar presence of his owl as it landed on his shoulder and nipped lightly at his ear.

He reached back with one arm as he stroked her feathers while the other arm flipped through the pages, his emerald eyes moving quickly as he sped by the pages of the book. His other hand also had his wand in his hand, which he did the motions of the charms numerous times before he moved on, though that also went quickly.

Hedwig hooted once and then flew to the chair opposite Harry, landing on the top of the backrest and watching her master with her yellow eyes.

It was then that he stopped and reread the section of the book he was on. It was near the end of the book and the title of the section was _Fighting Dementors with Charms_.

_There are few ways to counter Dementors. Regular spells such as expelliarmus or reducto will only annoy them and do not work, though it may also prove a distraction. However, the best way to counter a Dementor is to use the Patronus Charm, a simple and yet hard to perfect charm that creates a Patronus to shield you from Dementors. If strong enough, it may even drive away Dementors._

_There are three types of Patronuses. One is the misty, shield sort of Patronus, which is the weakest version and will only serve to block a few Dementors. It will, however fail in the face of at least five Dementors. The second type is the Corporeal Patronus, this is the strong version of it and serves to defend the caster from multiple Dementors. Accounts have put the highest number at thirty-two Dementors._

_The most powerful type of Patronus is the Light Patronus. Only few have succeeded in casting such a patronus, for it requires formidable skill and power to do so. This type of patronus will not only drive away Dementors and defend its caster, but it will also destroy a Dementor. Only two people have reportedly done this. One is supposedly Godric Gryffindor, who used it on a rogue band of fifty Dementors, of which only eighteen survived. It was then that the Dementors pledged support and loyalty to the Ministry in exchange for Godric's not destroying them._

_The next wizard is Albus Dumbledore, who was reportedly seen casting a Light Patronus and destroying at least eight Dementors in his early years. Dumbledore's patronus has yet to be fully confirmed and seen, but the witness said the Patronus had a blinding sort of light coming from it, which is a true observance of a Light Patronus. However, this has yet to be fully confirmed._

_To cast a Patronus, you must firs think of a happy..._

Harry wondered if he could create a Light Patronus. He would certainly be very happy with himself and also far more confident if he could, but even if he could not his corporeal patronus was fine for him. He continued reading, but there was nothing there about how to specifically cast a Light Patronus. It only described that the more power you put into it and the happier the memory, the more chances it could become strong enough to become either corporeal or Light.

He finished the book and picked up another one, this time titled _Cheap Charms_, and started reading.

* * *

_Grimmauld Place_

Severus finished briefing the Order, all of whom knew all about the Death Eater hideouts now. He kept a blank face on as he looked around, expecting any questions, but surprised to find that there were none.

"Thank you, Severus. That was most informative. Trust that you are truly invaluable to us," said Dumbledore with a smile and a twinkle in his eye.

Snape bowed his head slightly, but said nothing.

"We shall split into two groups and attack both Death Eater hideouts simultaneously. Our main objective is to capture as many Death Eaters alive as well as to confiscate anything that may prove useful in the future," he turned to Moody, "Alastor, you shall lead the attack on the second and smaller hideout and bring along the newer members as well as Remus, Tonks, Filius, Arthur, Dedalus, and the twins. I shall lead the assault on the first and much bigger hideout with the rest," he then continued to explain their plan of attack.

* * *

_5 months into training..._

Harry slapped away a spell aimed at him and jumped into the air to his right, twisting and firing off a few curses of his own. His opponent sidestepped and conjured a shield at the same time, which absorbed some of the spells.

Landing gracefully and silently on his feet, Harry leapt again into the air and continued his assault. He sent a modified bludgeoning charm as well as a sweeping hex and a few stunners.

His conjured opponent flicked away some of the stunners and threw up a shield again. This time, the bludgeoning charm broke through the shield and the sweeping hex flipped his opponent on his back.

Taking advantage of the situation, Harry sent multiple spells at his opponent in rapid succession. It was then that his opponent exploded into a cloud of black smoke.

"Well done, Harry," said Genkou, clapping his hands.

Harry wiped some sweat from his forehead and nodded. His wand held loosely in his hand. He was already a master at charms now, according to Genkou, and was almost finished with mastering transfigurations. He had cleared through the defensive spells section and the Charms section of the library. He was halfway through the Transfigurations section in the library and had also started reading up on Dark Arts books.

Even though some of the spells there may make him seem Dark, Genkou argued over a course of a few days and eventually won out. He had said that the Dark Arts shouldn't be considered Dark Arts really. It is the intent of the spellcaster that determines whether a spell is dark or not.

"The killing curse is an unforgivable curse because it kills someone, but if you use it to defend your family against Death Eaters," he had argued, "Then is it still Dark? What if you had, instead, used a cutting charm and severed their heads? Isn't a cutting charm a 'light' spell in a sense that it's not the Dark Arts? Yet you still killed him, in a much more gruesome fashion, but still killed him."

Harry had tried to argue back, saying it was wrong, but Genkou was right in what he was saying. It was the intent of the spell that should determine whether or not it is a Dark spell.

"Besides, you will find that some of the spells the Ministry considers Dark Arts are actually not that bad. It is only considered Dark Arts because dark wizards have used it in the past," said Genkou before they continued on with their training.

Upon Genkou's insistence, Harry had also begun to learn Arithmancy and even though it was difficult for him, he found out why Hermione loved the subject so much. He had only read a few of the beginner books about it, but he was already interested in learning it fully. He smiled as he thought of the look of surprise on Hermione's face once he came back very knowledgeable of Arithmancy.

Shaking his head, he faced three opponents this time. Wand held ready, Genkou called the match to begin.

All three cast violet spells at once, but Harry was already a blur having leapt into the air, firing off spells at the same time. He landed, crouched, rolled on his shoulders, and then stood up while still moving about. Genkou had told him that the key to victory is not merely standing still, but moving around and fighting at the same time.

"Disorient your enemy, make him work hard at trying to hit you, and trust me, hitting a moving target, especially one as fast as you, is extremely difficult. However, if you really truly chose to, you could just stand still and your sheer power may just help you overpower your enemies. I suggest you not do that, but then again it may prove a useful thing to do someday," Genkou had said.

Harry rolled over as several multi-colored spells landed on the spot where he had been. He sent multiple tripping jinxes disguised under a few stunners and reductos.

One of his opponents fell while the others had put up shields just in time. It was hit by a reducto curse and blew up into a cloud of black smoke. The other two began to move then, walking left, right, ducking, and doing other things that normal wizards would do in a situation like this. Though he had also seen many wizards just stand still and fight.

"Reducto, silencio, stupefy, reducto, silencio, silencio, langlock, incendio, reducto," he whispered hastily towards one of the wizards as he brought up a shield. A few spells impacted on his shield, but it held firm.

The opponent he had targeted swatted away a few of the spells and sidestepped, but Harry had already sent another volley and his shield collapsed under the weight of the spells. He was hit by a silencio and a langlock, which glued his tongue to the top of his mouth. Unable to cast any spells, since most wizards couldn't cast silent ones, it fell to the ground and blew up into black smoke.

The last of his opponents suddenly got faster. His movements were a tad bit quicker than before and his magic was a bit stronger. It also was slightly smarter than the other two as Harry dueled with it.

He sent a few cutting charms and severing charms, then sent a tripping jinx coupled with two stunners in rapid succession. He turned sideways and bent backwards as a spell whizzed by his face. He brought up his shield again and then began attacking once more.

"Remember, Harry! Surprise your enemy! Confuse them! And most of all, overpower them!" said Genkou from the sidelines.

Harry nodded and then conjured a flock of birds all around his enemy, who tried to shoot at them and was flapping its arms to get them away. Finally distracted, Harry moved in for the kill. With amazing speed, he had crossed the entire hall and grabbed his opponents arm. His hand on its wrist and the other above its elbow, he made a swift movement and brought his opponent down, making it drop its wand.

He then broke its arm and then in one fluid motion, stood up, stepped back, and stunned it. It too blew up in dark smoke as the barrier surrounding the fight collapsed.

"Well done, again! You are improving indeed, my apprentice," Genkou acknowledged, clapping once more.

* * *

"Remember that you can modify the power you put into spells. You know how the regular spell feels like, I'm sure, and so if you just but in a bit more power you should feel the change in the spell. You should feel it being a little bit more... 'charged' up and 'heavier' in a sense that it is stronger. This is one of the ways to cast a Light Patronus, as you have asked before," his master explained. 

"Have you ever cast a Light Patronus?" asked Harry.

Genkou thought for a moment, "I believe I can cast a Light Patronus, but it has been so long since I have actually had to use one. In fact, I don't think I ever did, but I suspect I will need to since the Dementors are on Voldemort's side," came the reply.

Harry nodded and watched as Genkou silently cast his patronus. To Harry's surprise, a very bright silver bear appeared. It was huge and also a bit blinding, though thankfully he had charmed his glasses to automatically polarize in the event of such a bright light.

It growled a bit as it trudged around before Genkou cancelled the charm.

"You're turn, apprentice. Remember to try to get a very happy memory along with infusing more power into the spell. Overcharge if you need to," Genkou told him, watching him with brown eyes.

Harry's own emerald ones glowed with energy as he cried, "Expecto Patronum!"

From the tip of his wand a bright light glowed and streamed out, forming into a blinding patronus. It seemed a bit brighter than Genkou's but looked much the same, of course Harry's was a stag. He watched as Prongs, the nickname of his father because his animagus form was that of a stag, turned to look at Harry before Harry cancelled the charm.

"Excellent. On the first try too," said Genkou, "I believe we will have to increase the pace so that we can maximize your potential."

Harry nodded, though his mind was elsewhere as his patronus reminded him of the father that he had never had. It also reminded him of his mother, who had saved him at the cost of her life so long ago. He fought back a tear as he noticed Genkou leave the room. Shaking his head, he quickly followed his mentor. He couldn't afford to be distracted now.

He followed Genkou's magical signature and aura into one of the larger rooms down the hall. Upon entering, he noticed that there were several statues there that were not there before. There was also some furniture and other materials.

Giving his mentor a questioning look, he walked over to him and stopped, waiting patiently.

"Harry, today we will begin with the last and hardest part of Charms, which is animating objects. Animating objects is a charm because it does not change the true nature of the object, which if it did would make these branch of magic under Transfiguration. Though there may be some transfiguration involved if you want to make your animated object stronger or faster and such.

But that is for later. Now, we will just practice making them move and do things. I am aware that you have seen this done before?" asked Genkou, looking over at his black-haired apprentice.

Harry nodded, "It was in the Ministry... when Dumbledore dueled with Voldemort... he made the statues in the fountain protect me from some errant spells and also held me down," he explained.

Genkou nodded, pointing with his wand to one of the statues. It was a statue of a tiger, it's fangs bared and claws sharp. With a slight swish of his wand, the tiger leapt off from its pedestal and landed on the floor with a thud. It growled suddenly as its stone eyes blinked. Genkou then pointed his wand at a suit of armor this time, making it come to life and draw its sword.

His wand still out, he flicked it and the tiger started to circle the suit of armor, which held a sword firmly in its empty steel gauntlets. It followed the tiger as it circled him, carefully holding the sword before him.

In a sudden movement, the tiger leapt, its heavy stone body in the air. The suit of armor sidestepped, barely avoiding the tiger's leap, and then it slashed at it with its sword. However, its steel sword merely clanged and scraped against the stone of the tiger, which then launched itself at it again, causing it to collapse. The armor was dented and broken while the sword fell to the ground.

In a moment, the suit of armor was repaired and returned while the tiger leapt back to its place and then froze once more.

Harry had looked on with wonder and could see that the possibilities with this were endless. He then had a new respect for charms and found that he now, indeed, loved the branch of magic. Perhaps Professor Flitwick knew how to animate, though he had never seen the little dwarf professor do so. He made a note to ask him the next time he saw the little professor.

"Now, are you ready to learn?" asked Genkou with a grin.

Harry nodded enthusiastically, wand out and ready.

"Good. The first thing that you must do is..."

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Thank you for your reviews. I hope that I can write better and keep you interested in this story. Honestly, I'm new to this in a way. Any suggestions and comments are appreciated as always. 


	7. Elementals

**DISCLAIMER:** So one day, I had this idea to make a story about wizards in the modern world. However, I fell asleep and the evil withc, JK Rowling, came and stole the idea, obliviating me in the process. I only now remember because... well, I don't own HP. :(

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_Elementals_

* * *

_Twelve months into training..._

Harry was progressing very fast and Genkou was most definitely impressed. Whatever challenges Harry faced and whenever it became difficult, he would strive and work harder until he got it, usually a few days later.

Harry was learning how to incorporate a lot of the things he had learned previously into one. Such as transfiguring an object into something then charming it and using it as a weapon or an ally. He had begun fighting with large groups of enemies now and Genkou had to magically expand the already large training hall to accomodate the changes.

Genkou was also teaching him the other fighting styles that he knew that Harry did not know yet. Though he knew he could also revert to other styles, he still wanted to know as much as he could. He also was being taught Muay Thai, Jiu Jitsu, and some Hapkido.

Of course, all of this was coupled with his magical training, which took precedence over the physical for the time being.

"Concentrate Harry," Genkou said. A large rock stood in the middle of the training hall, having been conjured by Genkou. "I want you to transfigure this rock into something, animate it, and then fight it," he instructed.

Harry nodded in acknowledgement and concentrated. The hardest element to transfigure was earth, or in this case stone, and so it required more concentration and power than usual. However, if he mastered this, than almost anywhere he could transfigure something to aid him in any way possible. He needed to practice a lot harder and a lot more though, since it took a lot of time to get used to it so that it would take less time to actually do it.

He made a quick motion with his wand and the stone trembled as its surface suddenly rippled. It slowly changed into a stone statue of a rhino, which he then animated and it came to life, its eyes flaring a little as it did so before they returned to its normal dark gray stone color.

The rhino snorted as it took a step forward, eyeing Harry. It was at least ten feet tall, much bigger than Harry would have liked, but he was calm and concentrated. He knew he could beat it.

It charged, suddenly, and Harry leapt into the air, the horn of the rhino nearly impaling him but he had judged correctly. He landed on top of its head and with a few bombarda spells pointed at his feet the rhino collapsed, sending him flying into the air. He hit the ground with his shoulder, rolled, and ended on his feet.

A quick motion with his wand and the rhino was repaired, though still unmoving. He then transfigured it into a real rhino this time. It took a lot of effort, since stone was one of the harder things to transfigure into a living thing. However, he succeeded and the rhino snorted for real this time. It rose up on its legs and considered its surroundings.

"Well done, apprentice. Well done," said Genkou, visibly smiling as he made a circular motion with his wand and the rhino disappeared with a glow and a pop.

Harry raised an eyebrow at him and Genkou just shrugged, though he had a knowing smile.

Unknown to Harry, a certain rhino suddenly appeared in the Forbidden Forest.

* * *

_Ministry of Magic_

Grant reread the list of personnel he had. They had three-hundred and twenty-seven Aurors on hand. Forty-three of which were Hitwizards. He also had thirty researchers and information gatherers, in effect somewhat like secretaries. They were the biggest department after all.

A wave of his wand made a chute appear from the ceiling. He carefully tucked the list into a folder and then put it into the chute.

"Minister's Office, Priority One," he said and the chute sucked up the folder and sent it to the Minister. It then disappeared back up into the ceiling.

He looked down at the information in his hands and read through it. The Death Eaters looked to be planning several attacks within the next week. Some of them on prominent pureblooded families who had not sided with Voldemort. Some on Ministry safehouses and outposts, and a few others on small muggle towns.

He grabbed the orb on his desk and told his secretary to call in all senior aurors for an emergency meeting. He'd have to act fast if he was to prevent the Death Eaters from succeeding.

Twenty minutes later, he had finished reading the information given to him and sure enough, his orb glowed and the voice of his secretary came from it. The senior aurors were ready in meeting room 4.

Thanking his secretary, he grabbed the folder with all the information and left his office, greeting his secretary as he headed for the meeting.

The room was nearly full, save for one empty seat left for him. There were twenty senior aurors, the fewest in history. In fact, this was also the smallest Auror count in history as well, showing that Voldemort had cut into the Ministry deep.

In a flash of light from his wand, matching folders appeared before the twenty senior aurors. They looked at him, questions in their eyes, but waited for him to explain as they opened the folders.

"We have received information that the Death Eaters are planning several attacks within the next week. The one attack they are sure of the date is on safehouse eighteen," he began, "It will be on July 28th, presumably at night. Our task is to be ready for them and, hopefully, set a trap for them so that we can gather information from any captured Death Eaters. I am saying this now, if left with no other choice you are authorized to kill, but if you have the chance to capture Death Eaters take that chance. We cannot afford to be left in the dark, trying to find a match and a candle."

They nodded as they continued reading, flipping through the pages in the folder.

"The other planned attacks are on safehouses six, eleven, and thirty-one. They are also planning an attack on the Weasley family, Longbottom family, and the Harven family. Further, they are starting plans on attacking the Ministry itself. We will prepare for that when the time comes, but first let us deal with the current attacks," he paused and pointed at one of the senior aurors.

"Tamara, take your team and beef up security in safehouse eighteen. You have much of the attack plan already in your hands and so you can formulate a way to trap any Death Eaters as well as repel the attack," she nodded at him, stood, and left the room.

"What about the other safehouses?" asked one of the senior aurors.

"We will increase security quietly and also have campers nearby just in case," Grant replied. Campers was the term for Aurors who were to stay near an area and camp out somewhere where they cannot be seen and, in case something happens, they come in to help.

The senior auror nodded and volunteered to take his team and camp near safehouse six. Grant acknowledged that and appointed two others to the two other safehouses. He then asked three more senior aurors to take their teams to each of the pureblooded families and camp nearby.

"I want the rest of you to keep your teams on full alert and ready to go in case something goes unexpectedly. Finns, I want you to find out what you can about the attacks. Actually, I want all of you to dig deep, try and find any information. Remember not to make too much of a ripple about it, else they find out we're on to them. Let's get this done people," he finished.

The sound of multiple chairs being pushed back and murmurs of conversation erupted as they all filed out of the meeting room. Grant stayed behind, his expression one of contemplation as he decided on the next course of action. The Ministry had to go on the offensive somehow...

* * *

_Back at Genkou's Residence, fifteen months into training..._

Harry cleared his mind and set about building up some more of his defenses. He already had quite an array of mental defenses and his full occlumency shields were nearly impenetrable, but Genkou could still get through after a long struggle. Harry decided that Voldemort was also much more powerful than Genkou so he still built up his defenses and practiced everyday.

Genkou looked at him directly in the eye, his eyes then began to twinkle. He felt a slight mental presence probing his defense.

"Impressive," said Genkou, before he suddenly unleashed a heavy blow on Harry's defenses. He hammered on it, but it held as Harry concentrated hard on fighting back. Without warning, his eyes flared a bright emerald green and suddenly Genkou's presence was thrown back into his own mind as Harry countered his legilimency attack.

He was somewhere in the mountains, dueling with someone. Someone that, Harry decided, was Genkou's master. They were dueling and they were going so fast it was as if someone fast forwarded a movie.

Suddenly, the scene disappeared and instead he was with a beautiful woman. She had long black hair that went to her waist and intelligent amber eyes. She was in his arms, smiling contently, and he also felt the happiness that Genkou had felt at that moment.

It suddenly disappeared again, to be replaced by a memory of an explosion. A defeaning bang, fire everywhere. Suddenly, a dark-hooded figure came. Crimson eyes flashing.

Genkou was too stunned from the explosion that he could not react fast enough. A green bolt of light headed for him, but then a body jumped in the way and his heart fell. He knew who it was. In a sudden rush, rage and anger welled up in him as well as pain and loss.

Harry watched as Genkou dueled someone who he knew must have been Voldemort. They dueled for what seemed hours, before finally Genkou landed a spell on Voldemort that made him hiss and fly into the air.

"This is not over!" he yelled before disappearing in a cloud of black smoke.

Then all became blurred as Harry was violently wrenched away from Genkou's mind with a sudden ferocity that stunned Harry. He reeled, back in his own self, and looked at Genkou.

He was sweating, his eyes glowing, and his breathing ragged. He seemed to be in a far away place from the look in his eyes and so Harry waited.

It took a minute or two before Harry noticed that he was back.

"I am sorry, master. It was my fault, I apologize profu-" but was cut off from a gesture from Genkou.

"The fault was mine alone. I should not have let you seen those, but I could not... I..." but words failed him for the first time that Harry had known him. "It had happened so fast and I am... I am old, Harry. Old and dying, I can feel it... but not yet, no. I still have time. Enough time to accompany you for a few more memories," he replied with a sad smile.

Harry didn't know what to say so remained silent. After a moment, Genkou looked at one of the large windows of the training room.

"She was... she was my wife, Harry. Her name was Megumi. She was so very smart... so beautiful..." he trailed off, his eyes going off to some far away place. But then he shook his head, eyes blinking as he laughed bitterly. "But she's gone now, because of that arsehole Voldemort. Oh, I vowed that day, Harry, that I would do everything in my power to bring him down, to destroy him, and that is why you are here."

Harry nodded numbly, the memories and emotions from Genkou still in his head. An unshed tear started to form and he looked away so that Genkou would not see. They had both lost their loved ones to that monster. Both of them vowed to fight him and destroy him. They weren't that much different from each other, except there was only one who could truly end it. That was Harry.

"He will die, master. I will not fail," he said with a confident voice, though deep inside he questioned whether he could really do it. Voldemort was far older than him and far more powerful, but then again he was... catching up, in a way.

Genkou looked at him, wiping errant tears away from his cheeks and eyes. He smile tugged at his lips as he replied, "I know you won't, Harry. I know..."

It took another ten minutes to get themselves together before Genkou spoke again, breaking the silence. "I think we are done for today. We shall continue tomorrow, but I daresay you have gotten extremely adept at occlumency. Perhaps legilimency will be next on the agenda," he hinted before walking away.

Harry stood and walked over to the window, his hands clasped behind his back. He could sense the sadness eminating from his mentor, but he did not know what to say or do, so he decided to let him pass it on his own. He looked out the window, but saw nothing as his thoughts were elsewhere. He was thinking of his friends and how he would do anything to protect them.

So much depended on him. So many lives, so many futures. He sighed, feeling very old all of a sudden. He knew he was no longer a child, his innocence had been stripped from him long ago. But there was always that hope, that maybe it was all a bad dream and he would wake up and live a normal life. He chuckled at that foolish thought. Clearing his mind, he walked out of the room and headed for the library once more. He had more than a thousand books full of knowledge to go through still. Time was not on his side, not even with the spell.

* * *

_16 months into training..._

"You have already mastered silent casting, apprentice. You have learned all that I have to teach you of charms, of transfigurations, of duelling, and so much more. Yet there are still other things that you do not yet know, nor understand. We are running out of time and I do not believe I can cast the spell again anytime soon," his master paused then, looking very old all of a sudden, "As you may have noticed, my power has diminished since the last time I cast the spell. Proof that I am indeed nearing my end, but I still have time with me yet. Enough, hopefully, to impart to you the knowledge you need to have to defeat the bastard." He did not have to explain who that was.

Harry listened intently, his eyes focused and his mind whirring, ready to take in whatever there was left to teach him.

"For the next two months, I will teach you wandless magic. It will be difficult, and perhaps you might not even learn it, but we must try. I will also teach you how to conjure, for it is extremely useful. Then we shall move on to your animagus forms. I will impart to you my knowledge on potions as well, and hopefully you will become adept at it. I suggest also that you study languages during this period, for after which we I will teach you something that will take all your focus and concentration, as well as your power and strength," he continued.

Harry nodded. He knew that whatever that was, it had something to do with whatever Genkou saw in the parchment all those months ago.

"Within this period I will also teach you what I know of Arithmancy, for you will need it. You can learn about runes on your own as well as languages, for that is easy enough from the library. But know that this will be far more intense than ever before... are you ready?"

Harry grinned, "Are you?" he replied.

* * *

"Wandless magic, Harry, will, at the beginning, take tremendous concentration. Then the more you do it, the more it will come easier to you. In essence, the more you practice, the easier it will be. The hardest part about wandless magic is that your body has become so used to using a wand that it may take time before you may do anything. You might be able to even move something slightly as your magic will look for a focusing point," his mentor explained. 

"However, if you focus your mind into using your _hand _as a focus point, then it will come easier. Eventually, you will only need to move a part of your body and it will happen. A true master, such as Godric and Salazar, need only move their fingers a tiny bit to cast a spell. Some say they merely looked at their opponents and they fell instantly before spells, but that may just be legend," said an amused Genkou, his eyes twinkling. The memory a month earlier already forgotten or pushed deep into the back of his mind.

Genkou, with a little concentration, levitated a rock off of the table that sat between the two of them. He let it fall, softly, back onto the table.

"We will start of simply first. Think of the levitation charm, how it feels like, and then will your magic to cast it. Remember to use your hand as a focus and to concentrate," said his mentor.

Harry held his hand out and reached into his magic. His eyes glowed briefly, but then nothing happened. Shaking his head, he cleared his mind and then told himself what he wanted to do. He thought of the levitation charm, of how it felt like when he casted it. He thought of what it was supposed to do, and in a moment, as if something within him clicked, he reached into his magic and cast the spell.

His emerald eyes glowed as he focused his magic from his hand. He felt his magic flow out of his hand and suddenly the rock levitated. It wobbled in mid-air as it rose, higher and higher, until it hit the ceiling. It was then that Harry tried to bring it down, but about halfway it fell of its own accord as Harry's hand dropped.

He looked a little tired from that, having had to concentrate hard to make it happen.

Genkou smiled, "It will get easier, apprentice. It always does," he assured him.

However, Harry thought he was just mad.

"Try again," came the command and Harry did so.

They did that for two days, until finally Harry, with a mere thought, could levitate the rock around the room. He could even adjust the speed at which it moved around the room and at one point he accidentally broke through one of the windows.

Without even thinking, he had repaired the window silently and without a wand, as Genkou's eyes widened slightly before he masked the surprise.

"Excellent. We can move on..." Genkou began.

* * *

_Ministry of Magic_

Minister Bones was reading the personnel reports that had been sent to her. She cursed when she read the personnel count for the MLE. Apparently this was the lowest number of Aurors in the Ministry in its entire history. Proof that Voldemort had done considerable damage to the Wizarding World of Britain. She continued reading and had come to a decision on an important matter when the chute popped from above once more, startling her.

Shaking her head, she waited patiently as the chute deposited a few letters onto her desk. It went back up into the ceiling and disappeared as she picked one of them up. Emblazoned on the envelope was an eagle over a coat of arms, above which was written _**United States Ministry of Magic**._

She quickly tore it open and began to read.

_Dearest Amelia,_

_Forgive me, but the council _(which was like the Congress of the USMM) _has decided against involving ourselves with the war. Voldemort has yet to strike at us directly and we have confirmed that none of his Death Eaters have arrived within the country. Of course, that cannot be for sure, but I deeply regret the decision they came to. I am sorry, Amelia, but I have tried to convince them and some have already called me to step down if I continue on._

_However, off the record, I think I may be able to help. I have contacted an old friend of ours. You do remember Arcturus?_

Amelia grimaced at that. Arcturus had been her lover before she had met Edgar, who she married later on. He was a few years older than she, but was a formidable wizard and last she had heard, he had his own group much like the Order. It was like he was a wizarding godfather of sorts.

_He told me this, and I quote: "If Amelia asks me, I shall come."_

_He will help, I assure you. Contact me when you can._

_Gregory Johnson  
Minister of Magic  
USMM_

Amelia nodded, she had expected as much. The Americans had done so before, when they needed their help. They had sent a small team of thirty Aurors to help, all of whom died before Voldemort was finally defeated by Potter. They had proven invaluable though as they turned the tide. Eventually they fell before Voldemort and his Inner Circle, who had deemed them a danger to his plans.

After the deaths, the Americans withdrew from the conflict and decided not to aid Britain again. She had hoped it would be different this time, that they would finally see, but it was not to be.

She continued to open letters from the other Ministers, who this time, promised to send some sort of aid. However, they formally regretted that they could not get fully involved in the conflict. Sighing, she began to write a reply to each of them and to one other, in particular.

_Dearest Arcturus..._

* * *

_Somewhere in England_

"It is done," said the gray clad figure. A hint of armor shone in the pale moonlight before it disappeared beneath the gray robes.

The other figure was clad in dark green robes with yellow patterns on it.

Both of their hoods were up, obscuring their faces, though one could tell they were men just by their voices.

"Will he come?" asked the green-robed figure. He had his hands behind his back while the other had his arms crossed over his chest.

They both looked at the moon and then at the horizon, where an inkling of light started to appear.

"He must," was all the gray clad figure said.

* * *

_Sixteen months and two weeks into training..._

Harry felt tired as he drank some of the juice he recently conjured. He sighed as he lay down on the couch for a while, his body aching. He had fought with fifteen opponents simultaneously earlier in the morning and it had taken a lot from him.

He had won, of course, but he had gotten caught with a bone-breaking curse that had slowed him down for a bit. He had winced at the pain, instantly blocked it, and took care of the remaining two opponents before he finally mended the broken bone. He thanked Genkou for teaching him how to do so earlier on.

Hedwig hooted at him in greeted and flew over, landing on the backrest of the couch. Harry sat up and began to stroke her feathers as she hooted at him again, her large yellow eyes blinking and staring at his emerald ones.

"You think I can do it, Hedwig?" he asked the only companion he had while at the Dursleys for so many months, "Will I make it?" he whispered softly.

She hooted optimistically and he smiled. It was as if they could understand each other. Or perhaps... it was his beastmaster trying to come out. "Perhaps..." he said to no one in particular as Hedwig looked at him with a... confused look?

Shaking his head, he took a long swig of the juice, downing it and then banished the glass wandlessly. He could do the easy stuff without a wand, levitation, stunners, shields, but the more complex spells and charms still escaped him. Genkou said it just took time.

He picked up the book that he was reading before he took a break and flipped to the page that he was on. It was a potions book titled, _Practical Potions_, which contained a lot of household potions and such. There was, however, a section on healing potions and energy potions. He had already covered that section though and was back to the boring household ones, but he could not leave any stone unturned.

So he continued reading about a potion that would clean off even dragon dung from your floor, not that you should have any dragons around anyway. Another potion could be used to quickly grow vegetables in your garden, if you were that sort. There was another potion that would make all your dishes stain-resistant if you immersed them in the potion for a day.

A few minutes later, he closed the book and picked up another one. _Potions the Ministry Doesn't Want you to Know_. _Interesting_, he thought to himself as he began to read. Sure enough, there were a few 'dark' potions, such one that would make the drinker vomit blood until he had none left. Another potion would send the drinker to sleep indefinitely until you gave them the antidote. There was another potion that would increase aggression in someone and, if overdosed, could make them go insane in that they would attack anything and anyone.

There was one potion, however, that caught his eye. He read the section twice.

_**Godwin's Potion of Power**_

_A dangerous potion long ago banned by the Ministry. However, I will tell you how to make it and what its effects are anyway. This potion, if brewed correctly, will increase your magical power by at least a third. I say at least because it depends on the magical power you already have, the purity of the ingredients used, and the skill of the potion maker._

_The main reason why it is a forbidden potion is because it is extremely difficult to get correctly. The ingredients themselves are also difficult to get a hand on, half of which are Class A Non-Tradeable materials while the other half are just extremely rare. Furthermore, if you do not get the potion to within a certain threshold, as soon as you drink it you will die._

_Accounts state that the potion, if not brewed correctly, could melt your insides out or could make your magic unstable and essentially make you explode. For this you will need the following ingredients:_

_Acromantula Venom (At least three drops, no more than five)  
Dried Basilisk Venom (A whole fang infused with venom would be better)  
Twelve gargoyle wings (Dark Gargoyles, preferably - no more, no less)  
Hungarian Horntail Blood (At least five drops, no more than eight)  
Runespoor Eggs (At least three, no more than five)  
Re'em Blood (Six drops exactly)  
__Devil's Snare Juice (Ten drops will suffice)  
One sunstone  
User's blood (One drop will suffice)_

Harry reread the ingredients again. Some of them he knew where to get while the others. Hell, he didn't have a clue. '_Perhaps knockturn alley...'_ he thought as he looked at the list again. _'Or maybe Genkou has some... I doubt it, but still...' _he thought to himself as he took a mental image of the page. He also made sure to bookmark it with a wave of his hand and then continued on reading. He would ask Genkou about it later.

Three hours later, he closed a book titled _Arithmancy: A Guide to its Secrets_, stood up and stretched. His stomach grumbled slightly and he decided to go fix himself a snack. Hedwig had gone earlier, off to somewhere he didn't know. He could feel her presence close-by though and made a mental note to check up on where she was going later. He went into the kitchen, because he was not allowed to eat anywhere else in the house for some reason, and conjured himself some food.

Wizards had been taught for centuries that food could not be conjured, but in fact it could be. This is why house elves are so valuable, because they were the ones who knew the secret to conjuring food. However, one wizard who treated his elves very kindly and nicely long ago eventually got it out of them and thus passed down the information. That wizard was Genkou's ancestor and his mentor said that only few in the world knew how to conjure food.

Most wizards just quickly grew their own food or had house elves do it for them. Some even do it the hard way by transfiguring things into animals before killing them and then eating them. Harry shivered at that thought and pushed it away.

Harry felt the presence of his mentor in the room and he smiled. He could also sense the disillusionment charm on him, though it was very very faint.

"Yes, master?" he asked without looking behind him as he continued eating.

"Just checking on you, really," said Genkou with amusement in his voice. "You could sense me, couldn't you?"

Harry nodded as he continued to eat.

"Well, we should continue. You only have one week left before we have to move on to the next big thing," he said, sighing.

Harry sped up and finished his food within the next minute before banishing everything and cleaning the place with a wave of his hand.

"Oh, before I forget, oh mentor of mine," at this Genkou grinned, "Do you happen to know how to brew _Godwin's Potion of Power_?" he asked.

At the look on his face, Harry knew he knew. Genkou looked troubled for a moment and then looked back at Harry, "Why do you ask?"

Harry stood then and turned to face his master, "Because I'm going to need as much power as I can get to face Voldemort. He has years of experience on me and probably a lot more power than me right now."

"We shall see..." Genkou conceded after a while.

Harry nodded. He had to make it. What was so wrong about it anyway? Well, besides the chance of dying that is...

* * *

Soon enough the week ended. Harry had done a lot of potions, learned more about Arithmancy, and could finally conjure nearly anything he wanted. Even wandlessly, though that had taken a bit more effort than normal. 

Genkou motioned for Harry to follow him as they finished their morning physical training. Harry had then sparred with a few opponents before quickly showering and then coming back downstairs to train again.

He then motioned for Harry to follow him as they walked outside, to the backyard.

Raising an eyebrow, Harry followed him outside for the first time.

"Aren't we leaving the spell area?" he asked, suddenly halting as Genkou kept walking on.

Turning around, Genkou shook his head, "I gave it more power so as to expand the area of effect. That was why I had collapsed afterwards," he said, though that wasn't really the only reason why.

Harry shrugged and followed him until they were a good distance away from the house. A littile impressed at the increase in size of the area of effect for such a powerful spell, Harry walked up to him and looked at his mentor curiously. He still did not know much about him, but then again they didn't really have time to share such things. Not yet, anyway.

"Harry, what I am about to tell you will... shock you. Perhaps extremely so," he paused as if contemplating how best to tell him.

He felt nervous, was there something wrong with him now? Did something happen when his magic was released?

"What is it?" he finally blurted out, unable to keep in his curiosity any longer.

"Harry, did you know that... the Founders were elementals?" he asked out of the blue, his brown eyes watching the sky.

Harry shook his head, he didn't really know much about the founders.

"Hm, you haven't read up on them yet have you? I suggest you go read up on history and maybe some social customs and such as well. After all, you will be turning 17 and thus becoming a legal adult. This will give you control of House Potter, which I believe is the eleventh oldest family in England," said Genkou with an air of knowledge.

Harry hadn't known any of that and made a mental note to check.

"Are you also aware that... Voldemort, is an elemental?" he asked.

Again, Harry shook his head, becoming more surprised by the second.

"He is, yes. He hasn't mastered it yet, which is why he hasn't used it, because to truly master the elements you must be trained by someone who is an elemental already. There are so few of them today, that I know of that is. I know there are two in South America, four in the United States, three in Asia, and five in Africa. In Europe, there are three, well... four. Voldemort, is one," he paused.

"Dumbledore is another," Harry's eyes widened at this, he had never known, "I am one," said Genkou, further shocking Harry. He hadn't expected him to be.

"And finally, the last of the four I know, is you."

* * *

_Somewhere in Russia..._

Voldemort eyed the town closely, his magically enhanced slit pupils allowing him to see extremely well. He saw a few drunken wizards crash outside of a pub. A few lights from spells and some shouting and laughing echoed through the forest surrounding the town, but no one other than Voldemort could hear them.

He looked at the parchment in his hands again. It said that another map lay beneath the town, buried. This map was the true map that led to what he sought.

He had, at first, thought of obliterating the town, but then there was also the chance of hitting the map and destroying it. He would have to seek out it with his magic, though he also knew that there would be some kind of protection around it. So there was only one way to do it.

He disappeared in a cloud of smoke and reappeared with a slight puffing sound over the town. He glided into the center of the small town and landed softly, his robes settling around him. In one swift motion he drew his wand and did a complicated series of patterns with it. He hissed something and then enchanted burrowing snakes escaped from his wand.

One, two, six, eight, twenty, thirty. He eventually created fifty of them, all of which hissed at him in reverence.

"_Fiiiind the maaaap... sssssssshow meee where it issssss.._" he hissed at them in parseltongue.

They acknowledged him and began to burrow into the ground. It would take them a while to find it and his eyes suddenly flicked up as one of the drunken wizards approached him, wand raised. He challenged him in Russian, though Voldemort had no clue what he said. His eyes glowed a crimson red as a smile played across his lips.

* * *

_Back at Genkou's Residence_

Harry stood stunned beyond comprehension. His mind had frozen and his eyes stayed wide. His jaw opened of its own accord as his heart seemed to have skipped a beat.

"E-E-Excuse me?" he said, as if he had heard wrong.

Amused, Gekou repeated what he had said.

"Are you sure?" Harry asked again, finally regaining some movement and control over his body. His mind began to work properly again as he processed the information.

"The tests do not lie, Harry. But the strength of your elemental powers may vary... There is no true test for that other than to try using them. I, for one, am not as strong as... say, Dumbledore is. But I am stronger in elements than Voldemort, right now that is. After all, I was trained by an elemental and so was Dumbledore. Riddle was not," he explained and then seemed wince at what he had just said.

"How do you know his... real name?" Harry asked, eyes narrowing a little. Not that he didn't trust him, but he didn't know anyone beyond the Order and his friends that knew of Voldemort's true name.

Genkou shook his head, "I want you to trust me, Harry. I will tell you once this is all over, but right now we must concentrate on your training. Is that understood?" he said in a hard voice, his eyes guarded.

Harry nodded, though he didn't really understand why he couldn't just tell him then and there. It wasn't like he was going to think about it too much... well, maybe.

"Now, the first thing we must learn is which of the elements you are strongest at. All elementals can control all of the four basic elements, which are fire, wind, water, and earth. I say basic because there are three other elements, light, dark, and energy. These are the more complex elements and will be something I will go over later on," he explained.

Harry sucked it all in as his mind went into overdrive, his ears picking up everything and his mind taking it all down and understanding it. He was truly interested now, especially if it was something that he might be better at than Voldemort. It could be used to his advantage.

"Now, from what I know Dumbledore's strongest element is water while his weakest is earth, which is one of the hardest to control but also a bit more powerful than the others." Shaking his head, as if distracted, he continued, "Now, my strongest element is wind, which is the easiest to manipulate and control, but packs quite a punch," he demonstrated by enlarging a small rock into an elephant-sized boulder.

With a concentrated look, his eyes glowed as his wand made a few motions. Harry felt the wind spiraling towards his wand, as if he was sucking it into it, and then without warning let loose his magic. Harry _saw _the ball of wind that he had fired at the boulder and with a loud bang it impacted onto the boulder. When the dust cleared, the boulder was no longer there, replaced by a hundred smaller rocks.

Harry looked in wonder at that and then looked over at his mentor, who smiled at his expression.

"There are other uses for wind too," he said and with a wave of his wand, Harry suddenly flew into the air as a gust of wind so strong blew him off his feet. He instantly rolled in midair and then landed with a thud on his feet, crouching down as he did so to help lessen the impact.

"Then if you're in a really tight spot, you could do this," he said as Harry came close once more, his muscles a little tense as he expected another attack.

His mentor made some complicated gestures and muttered something under his breath, which Harry vaguely heard as "_Rediturboni_" and suddenly the wind picked up immensely. Dark clouds formed overhead and then made a circular motion over them. The clouds then began to spiral downwards, as if someone up there had flushed a toilet and Harry gulped.

A small tornado, about the size of a small house touched down on the ground before them. He looked at Genkou, who remained smiling as he cancelled the spell. The sky cleared and the tornado disappated, not before leaving large muddy and brown patches in the once completely green field.

His mentor was panting slightly from that and he looked over at Harry with a frown all of a sudden, "I used to make it bigger than that... and much faster... don't ever get old Harry!" he said jokingly though Harry could tell that he did miss his early years terribly.

"Now, let us begin. First, you need to concentrate on the element you want to manipulate. Since air is the most abundant and the easiest to control and manipulate, then we shall start with that. It is also the one I am most familiar with and so will be able to teach you the most of," he added.

"Okay, so concentrate on what element I want to control? You mean think of air and then just do something?" Harry asked, a little confused.

Genkou shook his head, "I want you to feel the element. Be one with it. Imagine just clearing your mind and letting air just fill it up. Let it flow over you, enter you, and be you. Eventually you will cast elements with a thought, but as I said, its hard in the beginning but it gets easier as time goes on," he told him, "Which is why experience is important in elements."

Harry nodded and cleared his mind. He thought of nothing but air. No, he _was_ air. He let his magic capture the air around him and become familiar with it. He eased his body as he, minutes later, tried to become one with the air. Tried because he began to think that he wasn't going to make it, which screwed up his concentration.

Genkou just smiled and told him to try again.

An hour later, he managed to make a slight breeze move some plants and had even managed, for about two seconds, to lift a rock with the wind.

Harry couldn't believe it. He was an elemental.

But then he frowned. Voldemort and Dumbledore were elementals too though.

That would be a problem.

He told Genkou this and he nodded, "It would be problematic. Godric and Salazar fought once... they fought for months... ever wonder why Africa is mostly desert now but other parts of it are suddenly full of jungle and water?" he asked.

The question didn't need to be answered as Harry looked at him with wide eyes and a little bit of fear gnawed at him.

* * *

**Author's Notes: I WILL BE GONE FOR ABOUT** **TWO WEEKS**. Sorry guys, but I'm off and going out of town tonight. I won't be back writing until about the 26th of August or so. I hope you will not forget this story. Once again, reviews are appreciated!! 

**NEXT CHAPTER:** _Training Ends_


	8. Potion of Power

**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own Harry Potter. I only own the plot and _some_ made-up stuff that you are not familiar with.

* * *

**The Destroyer**

_Potion of Power_

* * *

_Twenty months into training..._

Harry's emerald eyes glowed and his hair ruffled as he practiced an elemental spell that Genkou had taught him. So far they had covered much of the air element as well as some of the water element. They were going to start fire the next day and earth possibly next week, by which time they would be done with air.

Well, they would be done with Genkou teaching him about it. There was a small portion of the library devoted to elementals, some techniques, and also a few spells here and there.

He waved his wand in a particular pattern, since he couldn't wandlessly do it. Genkou had said it possible, but that it was extremely difficult to master. Besides, he was still learning and so it would be dangerous for him to even try to do it wandlessly at the moment.

He had, however, been able to do some of the spells silently. He unleashed the spell at a boulder not unlike the one that Genkou had enlarged months before. The wind roared and the spell, which had two-hundred mile per hour packets of wind rush at the boulder from five different sides.

The resulting explosion and disintegration of the boulder was defeaning. Harry smiled as he waved his wand to repair the boulder. That was the first time since Genkou had taught him the spell that he had actually succeeded in casting it. It had taken him a week, but practice sure does pay off.

He tried it two more times, both of which worked, and feeling satisfied he moved on. Feeling his power rush to his call, he made a quick movement with his wand at the ground beneath the boulder and water immediately seeped from somewhere underground. In a second the ground became extremely muddy.

The boulder sunk into the weakened and muddy ground.

Since the water was attached to the earth, he could then also manipulate some of the earth and with a slight twirling movement with his wand he made the mud rise up and engulf the boulder. In an instant, he cooled it with an extremely cold packet of air, effectively sealing the boulder within.

Of course, had it been another wizard, he would have tried to free himself with a spell. But since he had no one to practice it on, aside from Genkou who was inside, he decided that doing that was enough for the moment. He would at least know how to do it, but practicing would also help him do it faster.

He did a few more times, each time slightly faster than the last as he got familiar with what to do and how to do it. Genkou had also taught him the other day that using magic also strengthened his magic, since the more you used it the stronger it became and the less fatigued he would be the next time he used a lot of it.

It was like your muscles, the more you worked them out the stronger they'd get. Harry continued to practice what he knew before deciding to go back inside and get to reading once more. After all, he was only halfway through the entire library with only about 4 months left to go in training before he would have to face the real world.

He had yet to tell his mentor about the letter he had received from Hedwig. No doubt he could glean some opinion or advice from his mentor. Harry then decided to tell him the last week of training. It wouldn't do to think of it now, after all. He shifted the thought to the back of his mind as he entered the house once more.

* * *

_Grimmauld Place_

The Order was all there, getting their equipment ready. The separate teams were studying their plans once more and also studying the maps that Snape had provided. There was a murmur of discussion as the Order members debated and discussed the attack they were about to do.

"This one is shielded by that mountain to the north," said Moody, "They would no doubt have patrols watching out over there. The forest to the east would be the best insertion point, but I would bet galleons that they have multiple wards and traps set there," he growled.

"What if we just go from the southwest, through the river? They wouldn't expect it," offered Tonks.

Moody looked thoughtful as he considered it and Filius mentioned that it wasn't a bad idea.

"Yes, that could work," Moody muttered, both his eyes fixated on the map.

Remus smiled at Tonks, who smiled back and then suddenly flushed as she looked to her feet, suddenly finding them interesting.

"That would be a good idea. I doubt they set up wards _underwater_," agreed Remus, still smiling.

The twins just nodded their heads, their eyes studying the map.

"We have a bunch of gillyweed that you can borrow..." said Fred.

"... but we can also use the bubblehead charm..." continued George.

"... since it would be easier..." agreed Fred with a smile as they high-fived each other.

Moody muttered something under his breath as Remus and Tonks shared another look, this time of amusement. Arthur and Dedalus didn't say anything but agreed nonetheless as the little charms professor piped up his agreement on the bubblehead charm. He smiled at the twins, who just grinned back.

"Alright then," growled Moody, "We all know the plan then? One scouting ahead, that'd be me, four right behind me - that'd be Arthur, Dedalus and the twins - and Remus and Tonks cover the rear."

Everyone nodded in the affirmative and Moody, seemingly satisfied, limped away, his eye whirring around again in his constant vigilance.

"Bloody creepy when he does that..." whispered Fred as George nodded his head.

"The attack will be right after sundown, right?" Dedalus asked Arthur, who nodded.

"Very well then, I shall attend to some business first," he said as he walked out of the room.

The twins followed after him, mentioning something about checking up on the WWW shop. Arthur excused himself to go to the bathroom, leaving Remus, Tonks, and Flitwick, who was still gazing at the map.

"Do you think it'll work?" asked Tonks, suddenly unsure of herself.

Flitwick didn't answer, but Remus looked at her seriously and said, "It will," with a confidence that he didn't feel.

* * *

_Twenty-one Months into training_

Harry spun and made himself fall to the side, avoiding a string of rather nasty curses as they sped over him. The instant he touched the ground he let loose with a few spells of his own as he picked himself up with agility.

His eyes flared with power as he called his magic to him. His opponent was a conjured one, but this time set up to have roughly the same amount of magical power as him. It had taken a lot out of Genkou to conjure and enchant such an opponent, but it was worth it.

Harry twisted as a spell sizzled past his left ear, breaking his thoughts. _Damnit_, he berated himself for getting distracted as he sent a few cutting hexes and curses at his opponent. It deftly blocked them with a strange yellow shield, which shimmered before breaking. As soon as it did so it jumped forward, spinning in the air and casting multiple spells towards Harry.

Harry jumped to his left, away from his opponent, and rolled on his shoulders, coming back onto his feet immediately and casting some more spells of his own. His mind went into overdrive as ducked, moved to the right and fired off an overcharged reducto curse. The spell impacted on its shield and broke through it, but it was no longer there, having dropped to the ground.

The spell impacted on the barrier surrounding them, which shimmered slightly before becoming invisible once more.

He then sent a blast of dragonbreath, a regular spell that he had learned, as the temperature in the room suddenly rose. It was not as powerful as an elemental fire spell, but it was close enough to it even though it was just a regular spell.

His opponent suddenly conjured a bright blue shield as the plume of dragon fire split into two upon hitting the shield. It glowed from the impact, but held fast. After the flame was gone, it dropped the shield and retaliated, but Harry was no longer there.

He sent another dragonbreath spell at it as he ran around it, this time holding the spell. His opponent then did something that Harry had never seen in any of the defensive spell books. It dropped to the ground and did a quick but complicated motion with its wand and suddenly a globe of blue light appeared around it.

A millisecond later the fire from Harry's spell impacted on it. Seeing a chance, Harry quickly sent a few spells in along with the dragon breath and then let the dragonbreath spell go as he fired another volley of regular spells.

The spells impacted on its shield, but it still held. As soon as the fire stopped it dropped its shield, but then saw the incoming spells which were hidden behind the flames and tried to jump away. A few spells caught it on the shoulder and right torso as it spun in the air mid-jump.

It crashed onto the ground in a heap as the other spells whizzed over it. Moving very slowly, as if in a daze, Harry saw his opportunity.

He quickly went on the offensive as his opponent tried to get up. He conjured a few boulders, which in a wave of Harry's hands turned into stone lions. They leapt upon his opponent, who barely avoided them. It cast multiple spells at them and succeded in destroying one, but the other managed to tackle it to the ground.

Taking advantage of the situation, Harry swiftly fired off multiple spells, rolled closer and off to the left, and fired from another angle.

It noticed its folly as a sickening crunch told Harry that his lion had broken something. The conjured opponent silently screamed in pain as it levitated the stone lion in front of the first volley of spells. However, it did not manage to get away from the second volley as the lion disintegrated into fine powder.

It didn't blow up into smoke, however, as a few flicks of its wand made some of the wounds disappear and heal. Harry sent a few curses its way, one of which was a particularly nasty bone-eating curse that he had learned from a book. He had never tried it, but the neon-orange spell impacted on his opponents leg as it blocked the other spells.

It fell to the ground in a heap and Harry sent a powerful gust of wind at it, his eyes still glowing eeriely.

It rolled over as it tried to heal its leg, but the curse was specifically designed so that only the strongest healing spells, potions, and draughts could heal it.

The gust of wind suddenly broke through the barrier and shattered one of the tall windows. It was quickly repaired by Genkou, who was standing on the sidelines. He looked at Harry with a raised eyebrow but didn't say anything, neither did the young man see it though.

It stood and fired off a few wild curses at Harry, who began to wonder just how real of an enchantment this was. Harry responded by closing the gap between them. He grabbed the wand hand of his opponent by the wrist with his left hand and pulled, twisting his body as he did so.

It fired off a spell, but it hit the ground as Harry's knee came up into its gut. He moved his left hand to grab his opponent's shoulder while his right grabbed just below its right wrist. He then placed his left leg in front of his opponent's legs and pushed, all of this happening within a span of two seconds.

Falling to the ground, he immediately crashed down on his opponent and broke its right arm, which was in his grip, by the elbow. It cried in silent agony as Harry grabbed its fake wand and threw it away. He then stood, took a step back, and fired a powerful stunner. It blew up into a cloud of black smoke as the protective barrier around the fight fell.

"You could have ended that much sooner, apprentice," said Genkou with a look of puzzlement.

Harry nodded, "But I wanted to try out the new spells I've learned in battle. I also wanted to test my martial arts, it has been a while since I've sparred..." hinted Harry.

Genkou shook his head but grinned at the same time, "I cannot spar with you know, Harry. I am weakened, but perhaps another time," conceded his mentor.

Harry didn't respond as his mentor clapped a hand to his shoulder.

"Now, are you ready to learn about the complex elements?" he asked.

Harry nodded immediately. He had been wanting to know all about them, but the elemental section of the library had nothing on the three complex elements. He had even wondered if there were any, but Harry knew that Genkou wouldn't lie about them. What would be the point of that anyway?

Genkou told him to wait and left the room, off to go look for something.

Finding nothing to do and deciding not to wait and waste precious time, Harry decided to practice some of the elemental stuff he already knew.

He conjured a large boulder, which he enlarged even more. His wand instantly appeared in his hand as he waved it, his eyes glowing with power as he focused.

A large plume of elemental fire erupted from his wand tip, one of the elemental spells that he could only do with a wand. It was half the size of the boulder and upon touching the boulder a hissing sound came from it. Smoke poured out from the boulder as it melted quickly.

Harry let the spell go and sent a large jet of chilled air to cool it. After which, he sent packets of water in the air the size of beachballs using his water elemental magic and they froze as they went up in the air. He then sent them towards the molten rock. The chilled air hit it and cooled it somewhat as the ice balls crashed onto it.

Where the ice balls hit, the ground and anything around it instantly froze, though the molten rock around it began to slowly melt it away. Satisfied, Harry let loose with a torrent of extremely cold water. He stopped the spell as he gauged enough water had been let out before he made a complicated motion with his wand.

The large mass of water suddenly grouped together and took shape, forming a large human-like form. The water was still moving much as it flowed around inside of it and on it. There was a constant sound of rushing water coming from it. He ordered it to attack the molten rock, which in another complicated motion, he transformed into a large molten golem.

Both of the beasts squared up and circled each other as Harry set up a protective barrier around the fighting area, also enlarging the hall in the process.

Genkou came in at that moment, but Harry wasn't really paying attention as he watched his two creations. Genkou stood and watched as well, a small smile on his lips.

The golem lunged at the water-being, which evaded the attack quickly. It pounded on the back of the stone and lava golem, the impact making a large booming sound as water met rock and lava. It was followed by a hissing sound as the water-being drove its fist up to hit again.

This time the golem's left arm swung around, making its entire body swing towards the water-being. It's left arm also passed through the water-being's body and then the rocks, no longer held together by molten lava, which was what Harry had enchanted to connect it together, fell away. The rocks thudding to the ground.

It roared and crashed its other arm, a huge rock as a fist, into the face of the water-being, which erupted into thick smoke and a loud hissing noise.

Harry, however, had then realized who the winner was already.

The water-being, being made of water and essentially more flexible and far more durable than rock and lava, quickly enlarged itself and in a crash of water, fell upon the golem. It looked as if it was some kind of amoeba. The golem cried once before it fell into a pile of rocks, no red lava visible.

The water being grouped itself back together, but the loss of water made it much smaller. With a flick of his wand, Harry cancelled the enchantments and then banished the water as he cleaned up the mess. He collapsed the barrier as well and then turning around to his mentor, who had conjured two chairs and a table, he walked over.

There was a large tome on the table, which Harry looked at it with curiosity. He emitted a loud groan as he noticed just how big it was and how thick it was. It was the size of the entire table, which was about three feet tall and two feet across. It was also a little less than a foot thick. Something in his gut also told him it was probably full of small writing.

It's cover was golden, and Harry felt and sensed, that it was real gold. It also had some strange silvery metal on it and hundreds of runes were engraved upon its face. A large line of runes in the middle, Harry guessed, was the name of the book. He translated it to be _The Power of the Elements_.

"In here you will find all you will really need to know and all that I already have not taught you about the elements. Especially the complex elements, because I am not very adept at them. The last one, in particular, I cannot even use," Genkou told him, "But that is for later. For now, let us finish the Light and Dark elements so we can move on to other things."

Harry learned that the Light element was mainly on healing and defense as the majority of the spells were focused on healing, repairing, and shielding. It also had a few offensive spells, but there were very few of them.

Genkou cast one of the Light element shields and told Harry to attack him.

He fired off multiple stunning spells, which impacted on the shield and made it glow brightly. Suddenly, it spat back the spells towards Harry, who ducked and cursed at the same time. Thanking his quick reflexes, he looked at the shield in wonder as Genkou smiled.

"As you can see, this is a reflective shield. However, it only works for regular spells. Try using an elemental spell, a weak one mind you," he added.

Harry's fingers closed slightly, as if he were holding a ball, and indeed a ball of air suddenly swirled in his palm. He then threw it at Genkou, expecting the shield to somehow fail or block it. It, however, passed right through the shield and made Genkou take a few steps backwards.

"Good," he grunted in pain, "A little too strong, but good," he said.

Harry apologized but he waved it off. He took a little break for a minute before resuming his lesson.

He explained that the Dark elemental magic was the opposite of the Light elemental magic, "Obviously," he added with a grin. "They are more focused on incapacitating the enemy, mainly offensive spells. In fact, from what I know, there is only really one Dark shield spell," he said.

He then taught him the few spells that he knew before stopping, looking a little tired. Harry sensed that his magic was strained from doing those elements and asked him if he was alright.

"I am fine, don't worry about me, Harry. You continue your training and I'll continue teaching," he said, waving his hand as if to swat the matter away.

Harry looked at him with concern, but didn't say anything as he practiced what he had been taught. Genkou watched on and Harry sensed that he was trying hard not to show his exhaustion, but again he did not say anything.

* * *

_Twenty-two months into training..._

Genkou looked at Harry and sighed. He was beginning to brew the power potion, with Genkou's help of course, and was already halfway through with it. Genkou had made the potion before and so had the ingredients, enough to make at least five or six vials of it.

"It was counter-clockwise nine times right? Or was it the other way around?" Harry asked, unsure.

"No, apprentice. Stir counter-clockwise eleven times and then stir clockwise nine times. After which you will add the Acromantula Venom and quickly after stir a half time around, clockwise," instructed Genkou without missing a beat.

Harry nodded and did as he was told. The potion, in a moment, then turned a dark purple and he let out a breath he had not know he was holding. They could not afford to mess up. First, they had no more ingredients, and second, they would die if they did. Or he would anyway.

"Good. Very good," Genkou said, observing as Harry moved around, eyeing the potion every now and then. "It will turn pink in a few minutes, that is when you must add sunstone. After that it will turn a brownish color, but then clear up to become a pale green. You can add the Re'em blood then, but I suggest you wait a little bit and you will see a brief neon green before it turns back to pale green. If you can drop the Re'em blood when it is in the neon stage, it will enhance the effects," he told Harry.

Just as he said so, the potion turned pink as Harry carefully added the hand-sized, glowing sunstone. It fell into the cauldron, eliciting a hiss from it, and then turned a dark brown. Harry saw it began to clear and instantly grabbed the vial of Re'em blood. He had no idea what a Re'em was, having not read any creature books from the library yet and made a note to check on that.

The potion turned a pale green and he unstoppered the vial, readying himself. The potion, in an instant, turned a neon green and he added six drops in quick succession. The potion flared with light and then turned a pale yellow.

"Yes... yes, that's it," Genkou encouraged, watching with his brown eyes.

"Add the gargoyle wings three at a time every two minutes from now on. The potion will become golden, then add the drop of Horntail blood immediately after the last gargoyle wing. After which, wait about five minutes before you put in the four runespoor eggs," instructed Genkou.

Harry had wanted to do the potion on his own, while reading the book, but Genkou had refused and said that he would take him through it step-by-step. Indeed, Harry saw that that was the right decision and he shook his head. After all, he wasn't exactly a potion master unlike Genkou.

He followed his mentor's instructions until finally, the potion turned pale gray. Harry wiped some sweat off his brow as he surveyed the scene. The table was messy, a few empty vials and some pieces of whatever were scattered about. With a wave of his wand he cleaned them up and then took of his dragon hide gloves.

"It is finished. Now pour them into the correct sized vials," his mentor told him with a smile.

Harry did so, filling seven vials with the pale gray liquid.

"Now all you must do is..." but was interrupted by his pupil.

"Add a drop of my blood before I drink it," said Harry in a whisper.

Genkou nodded, "You can only take it once, Harry. Any more times and your magic may become very unstable... you know what will happen if it did. It would either turn you into a squib or kill you with a magical explosion. Along with me, as well..." said Genkou.

Harry nodded.

"I suggest you take it now, it's fine," said Genkou, "However, you may be... knocked out for some time. Depending on how much magic was increased in you," said Genkou.

Harry nodded again, but then his gaze flicked over to his mentor, "But, master, why don't you take one? It will increase your power once more..." but then he realized the problem.

"I've already taken it once in my lifetime, Harry. The power I have now is not my natural power... it is my modified power. If I took another one of those, at my state, I would die," replied Genkou seriously.

"Oh," Harry said softly.

He put the vials on the shelf in one corner as he thought of who else would need them. He smiled as he thought of his friends before he conjured a dagger and pricked the tip of his finger with it. He banished the dagger and opened the vial as he squeezed his finger. A drop of blood came out and then dropped down.

Harry watched as it slowly entered the vial and as soon as it impacted with the potion, a cloud of smoke puffed out of it as the potion turned golden and began to glow with a bright light.

"Bottoms up," Harry said to no one in particular as he hesitated and then downed the potion.

It didn't taste that bad, but then as soon as it hit his stomach his eyes widened. His emerald eyes glowed and then he noticed that a golden glow was coming from his stomach. He hesitated a moment, in fear, as he thought the potion would melt his insides, and it felt like it as pain suddenly clawed up at him from within.

"It is normal, Harry," whispered his mentor, who had grabbed him as he began to convulse. "It is modifying and strengthening your magic, which will be like releasing that power block..." but then his voice drifted away as darkness took Harry.

* * *

**Author's Notes: **A short chapter because I had enough time to type it up before I actually leave. Thanks for all the reviews and support. And no, he won't be destroy everything Harry. Don't worry 'bout it. He will be powerful though. :) Oh, and I will actually be back the 26th, sorry. :(

The next chapter was supposed to be this chapter, but it was too long and so I had to actually cut that chapter in half. Training does end, but I was hoping to make a long chapter along with his visit to Gringotts and such. I will be writing a storm once I get back so don't worry.

**NEXT CHAPTER:** _Goblins, Gringotts, and Gifts_


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